


Caligo Days

by thewritingamateur



Category: Original Work
Genre: Age Difference, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Arranged Marriage, Baby on board, Car Accidents, Control Issues, F/M, Gaslighting, Implied Pregnancy, Kissing at Midnight, Law, Law Enforcement, Memory Loss, Novella, Obsession, Possessive Behavior, Power Dynamics, Thriller, Voyeurism, it all started with a kiss, lies upon lies, marry or die, tradition, who is telling the truth
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-03
Updated: 2021-01-23
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:20:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 40,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26261044
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thewritingamateur/pseuds/thewritingamateur
Summary: Newly single and finding back herself, all of nineteen-year-old Felicity Patel's plans are at a halt when she gets into a car accident. Waking up, she finds herself with a severely broken leg and the unwarranted attentions of Dr. Elias Montgomery, the orthopedic surgeon who saved her life. Though resistant at first, on New Year's Eve she gives in and kisses him right before midnight. Despite the familiarity, Felicity dismisses it and goes back to avoiding the constant advances of the doctor.Little does she know that he is more than a lovesick man.Felicity's world is shattered once more finding out that not only is she not nineteen anymore, but also married to none other than Dr. Montgomery.Questions arise when she finds out all who she trusted up to this point aren't willing to help her, realizing the only way to get through is to stand on her own two feet. Will Felicity's quest to find the truth finally lead to her freedom, or a labyrinth of secrets which would only lead her into a bigger trap than she is already in?
Comments: 24
Kudos: 49





	1. I

**Author's Note:**

> Won't lie it's not the best beginning to a story but I promise it get's better!

..patient is......conscious."

  
"Stats.......more drip"

  
"Her......rate is rising"

  
She tried to open her eyes, but it was painful to do so. She heard the voices but couldn't understand them.

  
Lights kept coming in and out of her eyesight.

  
Green, clothes, and several people surrounding her above. A mask was put over her heavy breathing. All she wanted was to stop the burning pain surrounding her body now. No scream would escape releasing the burden she felt.

  
Her last image before fully passing out was amber eyes, looking straight down at her. 

The next time she woke up there was a dull pain in her head, pounding at a steady pace. Blinking slowly, she tried to take in her surroundings, a plain ceiling with a strong light in the middle, she probably shouldn't look at it.

  
The last memory she had was driving her car in the rain, foggy air with tires skidding along the highway. The plan was to head back home for Thanksgiving with her family after taking a week's vacation in Miami. It wasn't her fault; her car was at the stoplight. Another car came from nowhere, unable to stop the vehicle on time. She didn't see until it was too late, preoccupied with a text her cousin had sent her asking if she was alright. It was a mistake to say yes.

  
Before she knew it the impact fell upon her, blacking out immediately.

  
And now she was here in a hospital bed all alone.

  
Thinking about her memory, the knock on the door startled her a bit. It wasn't as if she could just get up or jump from the intruder, so her only defense was pulling up the thin hospital blanket closer to her gown covered chest.

  
Approaching was a man wearing a doctor's gown and green scrubs. She felt some relief knowing it wasn't any random visitor.

  
"Miss Patel, am I correct?" She nodded, watching his strides slowing down as he reached closer to the bed she was on, eyes moving from her to the IV hanging above her, which she hadn't realized was connected to her with a needle. If she had been awake for the insertion of the needle there would've been a problem.

  
He offers his hand for her to shake, "I'm Doctor Elias Montgomery, I was the surgeon who took care of you from the accident." Her eyes widened at the word surgeon, did she get surgery and not know about it?

  
"The accident took quite a hit on your body, ripping your acl ligament and breaking your shinbone pretty badly. There was also the concussion and heavy bruising on your upper chest and lower abdomen. It's a wonder you're even awake right now."

  
"I-If that's the case, then why are you here right now?" Her voice was soft, and she didn't mean to come off as rude from her question.

  
There was a smile which formed on his big lips, it didn't look right on him. At least not with his facial features. She wouldn't call him handsome, but he was somewhat attractive to the natural eye. His lips were big, plush which wasn't a feature too common in men, his nose was large and slightly crooked, offsetting the rest of his face. Long was the only word to describe the shape of his face, big ears of either side which was mostly hidden under black hair. What brought his face together were his eyes, shining amber contrasting with thick dark eyebrows.

  
Blinking, she waited for his explanation behind the smile. Her eyebrows raised in question, "Well? Isn't there any protocol against a male doctor visiting an unconscious female patient alone?" Her voice came out confident, not feeling as confused anymore.

  
That lopsided smile still donned on his face, "Well, there isn't any strict protocol stating that I can't look into a patient with or without a female colleague along, but it is out of an unspoken courtesy that it's usually done. Unfortunately for you, Miss Patel, all of my colleagues are occupied with other things and I must make sure you are well." He took a step forward to take a hold of her left arm, probably trying to make her feel more at ease.

  
"I promise I don't bite."

  
Although he was only joking, there was a nervousness she felt in the pit of her stomach. Behind his light voice held strong commands. Then again, he is a doctor used to give orders. Complying, she relaxed her hand to let him know it was fine. He first took out a small light and shone it into her eyes, "Don't look directly at the light." Her eyes were a brilliant coffee brown which was highlighted from the glaring light, "There's no fogginess so your concussion is gone, which is extremely good news for you."

  
He then moved down a bit, closer to her legs, "I'll send a nurse later to check on the abrasions on your chest and abdomen, seeing that you wouldn't feel too comfortable with my checking." She bit her inner gum at his biting comment, no doubt mocking her.

  
"I'm going to check the healing of your acl ligament. It tore quite badly for a car accident." He lifts her blanket to check on her left knee, which was covered by a blue brace and bandages. She hissed as he began to remove the coverings, the tenderness becoming evident as the haziness of her coma and the wearing off pain killers. The padding of his fingers was rough, but he was gentle in not adding any extra pain to her knee. She watched for the first time how her leg was wrapped up in a cast, right below the blue brace. Her left leg was basically ruined.

  
"Healing will be a bit slow, but within a couple of months, you should be better. Your shinbone took quite the hit as well, we had to do surgery for the open fracture." She furrowed her eyebrows, "What's an open fracture?" He was careful to not touch the cast, "The fracture was big enough that your tibia broke the skin. That was most likely the reason you were out for several days with the loss of blood."

  
Eyes burned a hole through the white wrapping, wondering just how bad it looked underneath. "With two severe issues on the same leg, it will be imperative to closely look into your progress. You'll have to stay here for at least one month." If things weren't bad enough for her it just got a whole lot worse, "Well I have classes in a university over six hours away, I don't think I can really miss that."

  
"I think your professors would be a bit accommodating for your situation. All you need to do is rest up for now. We will begin therapy in four weeks, till then it's just keeping a close eye on your leg." She nodded as she watched him wrap her knee in a methodical manner. The only image on her mind was her bone sticking out of her skin, it was gruesome and quite sickening.

  
He went to one of the cupboards and pulled a syringe and put something into the IV bag. "Since you're awake now a higher dosage of morphine will be given to you, but that will only be the first two weeks. The last thing you need to add to your long list would be an addiction to pain medication." She knew he was trying to lighten up the situation for her sake, but even when trying she couldn't bear to give a smile.

  
"Until next time." With one more smile, he left the room, leaving her confused.

  
This had all been too much for her to handle, these past five months haven't been the easiest for her, first being dumped by her boyfriend of four years and now this. If it wasn't for the physical pain, she was feeling her tears would be going to her broken heart rather than her broken leg.

  
Despite only waking up all she wanted was sleep, so she laid back down and succumbed to the impending darkness.

~~~

  
Her family came to see her the first day she had woken up, profusely thanking Dr. Montgomery for his help. Her parents knew him and his family from the town's country club, often having lunch together. Her father managed to sell the doctor a lavish two-story home when he came back from Iraq two years before.

  
"We're so happy our Felicity was safe in your hands." She rolled her eyes as her father held her shoulders and gushed at the doctor. Guilt riddled through her when she noticed amber eyes flicker from her's, no doubt seeing her reaction. Nonetheless, he smiles at her father, "It's not a thing to worry about Rohan, within the time she should be all better and free to do as she pleases."

  
"That's the last thing we need right now. Her wings have been spread wide for the last few years and look at how she ended up. I think for now it would be best for her to just keep things close to home, Isn't that right Felicity?" Her father looked down at her with expectant eyes, to which she nodded, "Yep, keeping things low would be best." Although a mutter, the doctor had heard her.

  
"Well, I don't believe she would get far in the next few months, her leg is still not in good shape, and in terms of therapy it would take at least half a year for proper walking strides." Worry went through both the father and daughter duo hearing the predicted timeline. It was bad hearing she would be practically helpless for so long.  
"Not to worry too much though, I will personally aid her in therapy." Her father seemed to be relieved, but she felt the hairs on the back of her neck prickle. "Isn't there supposed to be another person doing therapy? I mean, it seems like a lot for a surgeon to also personally oversee a patient's recovery." Felicity hoped he would not see past her excuse, but the look in his eyes said he did.

  
"While that may be true, Miss Patel, as the head surgeon for the department I have a choice in what I would do in terms of surgeries. Since you are a rare case, I see this as an opportunity to detail and make sure of a near-perfect recovery for you. I do hope that you find this reasoning acceptable." His eyebrow was raised by the end of his explanation, no doubt smugly asking her to make a retort.

  
Her mouth twisted up in defeat as her father continued speaking, "Of course, you are the boss. Don't mind her she's still bummed out about her inabilities to carry out her plans the way she wants."

  
"I see. Well, I do have to go see my other patients to make sure their surgeries have also gone well. See you at the club Rohan. Until next time, Miss Patel." He brushed a hand through his thick mane as he walked out of the room.

  
A sigh came out of her father's mouth, "Felicity, be a bit nicer to him. He did both surgeries on your leg and is overseeing your recovery closely. I'm sure he doesn't do it for everyone but since he's a family friend there's a bit more care on his part."

  
"He's not a family friend, just mum and yours. Besides, I'm not being mean to him. I just don't find it that great to have him constantly hang around me. Soon people might think he has a thing for me." She gave a fake gag at the end of her thought, not wanting to believe what she had just said.

  
It was only the first day yet she couldn't understand her dislike of the doctor. He hadn't done anything peculiar for her to not like him, but she knew in her gut that something about him was off. Maybe it was from the tours, or simply the tiredness she's been feeling from being in a bed for so long.

  
"Look, dad, if it helps, I will try to be nicer to him. I mean I am nice to practically everyone. See?" Her smile was wide, and she raised her eyes to look up at her father.  
"Yes, you are right in being nice to others, but he is someone you must be nice to, no matter if he is my friend or not. Elias is just doing his job so just show your appreciation." Her father then went into the duffel bag he brought, taking out her laptop and an old stuffed fox.

  
"I suggest you start working on your late assignments soon. I notified your professors and they are willing to help if you show effort. I'm glad you're a motivated student." Her father kisses her temple before taking his leave.

  
Hugging her childhood toy, she starts up her laptop, needing a distraction from her reality.


	2. II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity receives good news, but at what price?

Chapter 2 

For the past month Dr. Montgomery made it an ordeal to personally oversee Felicity's therapy, saying that since he was the surgeon on something so rare, he wanted to make sure recovery was going smoothly. He would arrive at 10 a.m. on the dot every morning to see how she was doing. She did find it strange since her room buddy's doctor only came every few days. Felicity was an early riser, so she was usually on her laptop completing assignments or surfing the web whenever he arrived.

The routine was the same, he would check her vitals and then her injuries. He would somehow spend twenty minutes with her doing tasks which nurses would usually do. She knew it was not normal and tended to keep quiet whenever he was around.   
  
  


It wasn't that he did anything _to_ her, he didn't, but she knew he took a liking to her which she didn't reciprocate. Only once he had accidentally touched her somewhat inappropriately when he was checking her lungs his hands lingered a bit too long on her lower back. She had jerked away from him when the tension became evident, with him apologizing and abruptly leaving the room. 

He would always visit her right before he left for the day, giving her something to eat or leave a magazine from the hospital gift shop. By then his doctor's gown was off and his green scrubs were wrinkled. His hair would be shaggy over his face, sometimes covering his eyes. At first, she would refuse what he gave her, but that resulted in his insistence and staying around longer. At one point he left her the stuff while she was sleeping, which was beyond creepy in her eyes. The only reason she knew when he came around was by the position of her laptop. She had fallen asleep while using it and when she woke up it was closed, on her desk next to the word puzzle book he left her.

She only hoped he didn't try to snoop while she was knocked out.   
  
  


~~~  
  


Once or twice her cousin coincidentally came around the same time he was there. Anchal was a resident in the neurology department. They had gone to Miami together before Felicity’s accident.

One evening before her shift started Anchal brought the pictures from their trip, printed copies were something Felicity tended to like more than digital. Images of sunny beaches and smiling girls were seen in almost every picture. Anchal was in her bikini holding a mimosa, Felicity was a bit more modest wearing cutoff shorts and a striped one piece. A bittersweet smile emerged on Felicity's face, remembering how happy she was during that short time.

A sense of discomfort suddenly surrounded her, so she turned her head left. Dr. Montgomery was near her checking and scribbling something into her files. There was no doubt in her mind that he took more than one peek at the pictures. **_Gross_** , he was double her age or at least she liked to believe that.

"So, when you get out of here you gonna call that guy?" Felicity turned back to her cousin and furrowed her eyebrows, "What guy?"

"You know that cute art curator from New York? Maybe you guys can go to a gallery sometime or something..." Her cousin's eyebrows wiggled and nudged her, but it wasn't funny to Felicity, whose eyes were wide with a warning. She didn't want to talk about that, least of all in front of Montgomery.

"No, it...it's not going happen." Anchal rolled her eyes, "Your lost then". She moved to walk out the door seeing that there was five minutes before her own shift starts, "Look, I know things aren't the best, but you are going to move on from Parker sometime. The longer you hold out on feeling like crap the worse the effects."

There was an awkward silence after she left the room. Felicity grabbed onto the side of the bed, holding back her temper from erupting on the doctor. He cleared his throat before breaking the tension, "I suppose she's quite the talker?" Her only response was a half-smile at his attempt to ease her mind.

"For now, we're just going to take an X-ray to see the progress of your open fracture. If the healing is going as needed, you will start therapy within the next week and should be discharged before for the new year. That sounds good right?"

A slight nod came from her, so he got her onto a wheelchair and took off for the x rays. It did take her mind off her cousin's words, but now she was anxious about hearing the results.

Her heart soared hearing the word discharge, she could not wait to leave these closing walls. Right now it was Christmas Eve, so if everything was good it means she would barely have a week left. It would be sad that she missed the holidays, but at least she could be in the abyss of her home.

That would be the best Christmas gift of all.   
  


~~~

To outsiders, he was being nothing but a gentleman. The nurses gushed seeing that Dr.Montgomery was never really known to be so generous with anyone. It was quite obvious to them that he was taken with Felicity Patel. From the first day of her being in the hospital, he would go out of his way to see to her recovery personally. When he offered to help check her vitals and tend to her every day instead of the nurses assigned to her, it was weird. They would usually stand out the door, peering into the small window to make sure he wasn't doing anything weird. After the first couple of days they realized he wasn't going to do anything to her, so they left him alone and began to speculate whether he liked her or not.

He was an attractive man, although having odd features they worked together to create a unique look which many couldn't help but look at. He wasn't unkind, but very task-oriented. There has been a small faction of young nurses who have been rejected by him before, often citing that his work was his only focus.  
  


That wasn’t the case when it came to Felicity Patel though. Since she had woken up, he had gone to her twice a day without fail. He was like a puppy following its owner without falter, it was kind of cute to them.

The nurses would tease Felicity about it once in a while, but it was evident that she wasn't a fan of his attention. She had asked on more than one occasion whether it was normal for him to visit her as often as he did by himself, or if he even needed to be part of her recovery process.

Some answered honestly "no", but others would just say that she's lucky to have such an attentive doctor on her case, wanting nothing but to ensure her perfect health.

They weren't entirely wrong, but more than once some have asked Dr.Montgomery to possibly cool his gears when it came to Miss Patel. His fist would form on his sides and jaw became stiff when it was brought up, not wanting to listen to others. He insisted that nothing was wrong, and since Miss Patel had not made any complaints he would continue to visit. 

Maybe they should keep a closer eye on him after all. A gentleman can become a rake quick when under the wrong impression of a relationship.

  
  
  
  
~~~  
  
  


The happiest day for Felicity these past six months was when she was given a discharge from the hospital. There was a reluctance in the doctor's voice, but he told her to keep coming in for physical therapy three times a week. Montgomery made a space in his schedule to have her come in often enough. With his back turned she rolled her eyes, snickers coming from one of the nurses assisting her in getting off the bed.   
  
  


Although her fracture was still healing, it was alright for her to start training her acl ligament once again without re-injuring herself.

So, on New Year's Eve, she was able to have back some of her freedom. She hoped it was a sign for a good upcoming year. It was late, about 10:30 in the evening and the hospital wasn't too busy.

Felicity had called her father to let him know about the discharge and he said he was going to come late. Not wanting to be inside the confined walls she decided to convince one of the nurses to wheel her outside to wait in the cold, sitting on a bench shivering.

Thirty minutes passed by, then twenty more. She wondered what happened to her father coming to get her, so she gave him a call. "Daddy, why haven't you come yet?" She heard a sigh from the other side of the line, "Sorry sweetie I forgot to tell you that Elias will bring you home instead since he lives close by and was ending his shift." She closed her eyes; a throbbing was felt at her temple hearing the doctor's name.

"You shouldn't have bothered him with that dad." She could imagine her dad's shrug, "It's not a big deal Felicity be happy he offered. Anyway, I'll see you home soon." With that the line disconnected, she looked down at her phone in disbelief.

Just when did that conversation happen?

~~~

Although it was New Year's Eve, Elias decided instead of indulging in the Montgomery's famous celebrations he would take the evening shift. He knew that Felicity was being released that day so what better thing to do but be there for her? Since he was in charge of discharging her he decided to do so an hour before his own shift was over, hoping by the time her father arrives he would be able to help and have some good words between them.   
  
  


Since it was the holiday season the Patel's would only go to the hospital in the evening when Elias was already gone, so there wasn't any chance of catching up. He knew that if he was on Rohan's good side he could probably convince Felicity to interact with him more.   
  
  


What he didn't expect was to receive a call ten minutes before his shift was over from the said man. "Hello?"

"Elias! How's everything going? Are you coming to your parent's New Year's Eve celebrations?" He was surprised to be bombarded by the questions but answered none the less, "I'm alright, but no I'm going to finish my shift soon, so partying is the last thing on my mind."   
  
  


"That sounds nice. I actually called you for a small favor. I'm somewhat tipsy and as you know Felicity was just discharged. It's so weird that it was late I thought she would be discharged in the daytime.... anyway, I wanted to ask you if you could instead take her home. I couldn't bear anything happening to her and it was my fault."   
  
  


His heart stopped beating momentarily, or it at least felt that way. Him, take her home?

It almost sounded like a dream come true for him. Elias nodded into the phone but remembering he needed to give a verbal answer he tried not to sound overly eager, "That's no problem. Would someone be around to help her get inside?"

"Yes, her brother should be there studying for the Bar Exam, so all she needs is a safe journey home. Thanks so much, I really owe you one." The line disconnected instantly; the doctor was in shock.   
  
  


No, he thought to himself, he was the one who owed Rohan.   
  
  
  
  
  


~~~  
  
  


After ten more minutes of waiting outside, Felicity finally heard the soft rumble of a car approaching.

Grimace was seen on her face as the tall man came out of the silver Audi, dressed in a long black coat. "Miss Patel, I was looking for you all over the hospital. You shouldn't put yourself in a position to get a cold. It wouldn't be a good way to start the new year."

Chewing her inner gum, she felt a knot twist in her stomach as he lifted her from the wheelchair and into the front seat of the car, buckling her up also. She didn't realize her breath was being held until his figure went back into the hospital to return the wheelchair, coming back with crutches for her to start walking with.

It was nice to feel the warmth in contrast to the cold from outside, her nose became a dark pink and a slight burning was felt at the tip as her body began to warm up. She sniffled a little looking straight ahead, her body becoming relaxed with Mozart playing in the air. She couldn't help but hold tightly onto the sides of her seat, wanting to make sure she wouldn't fall off if anything were to happen. He drove slowly, so she wasn't scared that anything would happen.

The overall trip was fine until the detour Montgomery decided to make. One minute they were on the main road, the next they ended up by the lake. He stopped the car close to the ledge, she held onto the seat tightly worried about what was going to happen.

He opened her door, holding out his hand. She refused to look at him, "Why are we here?"

"Come now, Miss Patel, if I wanted to do anything to harm you, I wouldn't have taken so much time to ensure your recovery. Just trust me this once?"

She gave a glance up at him, although there was a small smile on his face his eyes were resolved, not taking no for an answer.

She breathed out, nodding in compliance. Instead of helping her get up, he hooked his arms under her legs and around her back, carrying her over to the wooden fence in front of the vast lake. Making sure she was steady on the thick wood, he stood beside her leaning back.

As if on cue, snow began to fall lightly, covering the bright full moon above.

"It's the first snow of winter, isn't it lovely?" She nodded, not ever remembering seeing such a beautiful sight.

"You know, they say if you kiss someone during the first snow it would bring good luck for the next year." He looked down at her this time, to which she gave an unladylike snort.

"Luck? There's no such thing, you're a man of science who should know better than that."

She watched as the doctor looked at his watch on his right wrist, "11:55, right before we enter the new decade. One kiss before the new year wouldn't hurt, would it? If it helps, we can put behind us and you wouldn't have to worry about leaving a man brokenhearted."

She shook her head no, not wanting to get involved in something she couldn't take back. She only ever kissed her ex so to her kisses were an intimate gesture, not something to do offhand.

Before she had a chance to voice it though she felt warm lips on hers without realizing.

Dr. Montgomery lifted her chin to bring their lips together, nothing rough. Though surprised, not intending to she started to kiss back. Maybe her unconscious wanted her to forget the bad of the past and indulge herself a little bit. Her hands became relaxed as he held her face, bringing her closer and pushing deeper.

His lips engulfed hers in a possessive manner, seeming as though it was his right to have her in such a way. His hands moved from her face a bit lower, fingers lightly pressing onto her slim throat. At first, she didn’t mind too much the pressure elicited mild pleasure. His hands soon began to tighten a bit more, without much thought and in the midst of losing himself, the hold became suffocating all too quickly. Felicity’s eyes opened instantly; a sharp pain edged in from her skull. Something wasn’t right. Pushing him lightly, she realized he got some of the messages as his grip loosened, hands moving down to grasp her shoulders.

Dr.Montgomery didn’t let up on the kissing though. On the contrary, he deepened the kiss further. Her futile attempts of pushing him away were for naught. It wasn’t unpleasant, but the fear in the back of her mind wouldn’t allow her to fully appreciate this man’s attention towards her.

They didn't stop until fireworks began to spring into the sky, celebrating the New Year. He moved back, staring at the snowflakes that fell on her dark lashes. Breathing was rough for both parties, her eyes widening realizing what had happened. She bit her lip, not looking into his eyes. A sad laugh escaped his lips, realizing it was in vain. Without another word, he carried her back to the car and drove her home.   
  
  
  
  


His arms would probably be sore in the morning the number of times he had to carry her body by the time they arrived in front of her home. Her brother Nigel was waiting for her, opening the door allowing the doctor to put her on their couch. After retrieving the crutches, Elias told her brother about physical therapy and bid him goodnight. Her brother helped her to her room, and a moment of fleeting happiness emerged in her heart seeing the old room she missed so dearly as she was cooped in the hospital.

Her parents arrived about 45 minutes later, having some friends along continuing the party from the Montgomery's home.

Felicity had trouble sleeping that night, and it wasn't from the partying her family was conducting in the living room. She kept touching her lips, remembering the kiss from before. She didn't want to admit it, but she liked it, a lot. It was a much better kiss than anything her ex had ever given her. Despite her discomfort, there was something exhilarating from his touch. Her shock was from her shudders from his hands around her rather than his kiss over her. A spell was cast over her at that moment, but she had no clue what was meant to happen from it.

Was she ambushed, a little bit but she didn't mind. Butterflies were strong in the pit of her stomach remembering the passion seen in his eyes.

They always say you will remember your first kiss, but she knew for her it wasn't going to be the case. The kiss given to her New Year's Eve will always be the one she'd never forget.

And she wasn't so sure if it was a good thing or not.


	3. III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dr.Montgomery finally decides to ask Felicity out.

Since the kiss New Year's Eve, Felicity decided it would be best to keep it at the back of her mind. She felt something without a doubt, but it wasn't an unfamiliar feeling. There was something electric about how their lips touched, and the look in his eyes before he had taken her home. She didn't want to think about it though, her heart was still for her ex and she wasn't going to have the likes of Doctor Montgomery try to sway her in his creepy way.

For the most part, things were uneventful for Felicity. All she was doing was going to physical therapy, having to see Dr. Montgomery's face more than she wanted. To her, it was awkward, spending an hour with him constantly touching her knee trying to strengthen the tender muscle. 

Progress was slow, much to her dismay, but he was patient. Her knee was bruised in a dark purple shade, sutures now dissolving. Her leg was much better, the open fracture healed quickly, now using a walking boot to move bit by bit. She made a point to not really talk with him, only saying hello, goodbye, and answering some questions attempting to be polite. He would talk constantly though, but it was like talking to a wall with her lack of reaction towards him.

Elias often felt defeated after sessions with her, there wasn't enough time for him to interact with her the way he would like to. Even with several other patients and nurses constantly making attempts to flirt with him, it was the quiet girl he was most intrigued by. His attentions were always on her, from the moment she entered the building until he saw her off with her father.

From all the times he'd seen her, Elias knew Felicity was a social person. Her face would be plastered with a smile as she would give odd anecdotes for all to like. Even at her young age, she was intelligent, he saw pieces of her papers she wrote when she was on bed rest in the hospital. Her love for art was also evident, having seen pictures of her artwork and an architecture project she was working on. Talent was something she had an abundance of, and something he wanted to acquire for himself. Such a woman didn't just go with anyone, but someone who matched in superiority.

He decided that after their next session he would ask her on a date. He knew that the kiss probably wasn't the best move with her, but it had to be done. Hopefully, she would agree and change her mind about him.

So that Wednesday when she came into the hospital, he purposed within himself that he would ask her to coffee after the session. He ended early for once so why not take advantage of it?

After the exercises and making progress for Felicity to make more steps, he sat her down back on the chair in the corner of the pale green therapy room. The window above still had some Christmas decorations, reminding him of how fast everything was moving. Over four months working with her but there was barely any progress in moving things forward. His amber eyes concentrated on moving her leg slowly, delicately like she was fine glass. 

"Have you been doing anything outside of therapy?"

She wasn't sure why he was interested but remembering her father's words she answered him, "Not anything too much. I've never had so much free time before so I just spend days working on some art or cooking for my family." A rueful smile spread on the doctor's face, "Sounds simple, but nice. Are you planning to head back to school later this year?" 

Felicity pursed her lips a little wondering why he was so curious, he would usually try to make talk with trivial matters. Not wanting to be rude, she decided to answer, "I decided to wait till the fall to head back to classes. Recovery is my main focus right now and the hassle of school wouldn't do me any good."

He nodded, "I can understand your worry about recovering, but from personal experience people who tend to pause their studies tend to have a hard time going back." Hands moved to raise her calf slowly, stretching out her muscles. The soreness was always there, but that never stopped the edging pain whenever her leg moved further than a 30-degree angle. Felicity thought about telling Dr.Montgomery about the pain, but she feared that he would just make it another excuse to see her more. 

"I'm not too worried about that. I'm getting ready to accept an internship offered to me months ago so the only way for them to fully hire me is by finishing the rest of my studies." She wasn't sure why all this information spewed out of her, he wasn't her keeper.

"But you never know what will happen in your life beyond studying. One day you have plans to go back, then the next you may get married and have children leaving it in the back burner."

Her lips thinned hearing his persistence on the issue, it wasn't like she had chosen all of this to happen to her. "I'm not worried about getting married anytime soon." She took notice of his hand stiffening at her response, hurting her calf a bit. Felicity let out a small mewl with closed eyes before he released, muttering an apology.

The conversation was closed after that.

As the session finished, Dr.Montgomery helped Felicity to her feet. She tried to walk a couple of hundred feet by herself, footsteps short and slightly dragging, but with the pain shooting up she became winded.

"Easy there..." he helped her to a nearby bench in the hall. He crossed his legs as he took a seat next to her, "Hmm...we should probably start more walking to strengthen the muscles."

"How many more sessions do we have left?" He took a moment to turn his head to her, "Not too many left, probably just a month then you're off on your own." There was a pained smile on his face she didn't see.

Dread spread itself through her thinking just how long a month will be. Already two months passed and she couldn't bear any more of not being independent.

"Would you like to grab some coffee with me?" Felicity stopped staring at the square on the floor pattern to look up at the doctor, to see if he was talking to her or someone who may have passed by.

Nope, he was staring right at her, a small quirk on his plush lips. It wasn't that she was surprised he asked, but with how little they talked and the awkwardness constantly surrounding them, did he expect her to agree?

Felicity chewed her inner gum trying to find the right words, it would be hard since he was in charge of taking care of her well-being in terms of recovery. One wrong word and who knows what he would be capable of doing?

Her hands were on the bench, slightly curling before contemplating her finite answer to the doctor, "That's kind of you, but I don't think that's the best idea." She refused to look him in the eyes it wasn't something she could withstand. Rejecting someone wasn't something she was used to, and she hoped she wouldn't have to again.

"I know I must have given the wrong idea with the kiss, but I think it would be best to forget about it. As you said, we could go on as if it never happened." When she finally looked up, his head was turned away from her. His thick black hair covered his face, her russet gaze fluttered down to see his hand clenched in a fist. So he wasn't happy about what she'd said.

"You're right, Miss Patel. I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable in any way." His voice was low, but not hard. It took all within him not to sound angry. He couldn't stay, being in front of her right now only felt humiliating.

"If you wouldn't mind, I do have some paperwork to catch on. I'll see you on Friday." He abruptly walked away from her, leaving her in silence as she looks on his retreating giant form. She didn't mean to make him upset, but giving him the wrong idea wasn't an option for her. Besides, she had just gotten out of a long-term relationship, looking for another wasn't on her mind.

Maybe she was being cruel in her treatment towards the doctor, and this whole situation was her punishment for some unknown reason. After a few minutes of sitting in silence, she decided to take it slow and walk to the front. Pushing herself up, she allowed the pain to overpower her as she limped to the door to wait for her dad. 

~~~

Elias hurridly marched straight to his office and slammed the door closed, alarming the nurses surrounding the help desk right outside.

They hadn't seen him so upset in months, and they could only assume that it had something to do with the lovely Miss Patel. She was such a sweet girl, always taking time to speak with them beyond just a hello or goodbye like most patients. It was a bit odd she was obsessed with talking about pop culture from four years before as if it currently happened. No one cared to correct her though, poor thing already went through enough with the accident there wasn't any reason to alarm her of something that may not even be true.

Miss Patel would chirp like a bird until Dr.Montgomery was around, which didn't go unnoticed by the nurses how the young girl's personality shut down with him nearby. They all knew how much he liked her, he would go from quiet to chatty in her presence, mustering up smiles which he never gave anyone else. The pair's reactions towards one another was a paradox to all who took time to notice. 

In his office, Elias went straight to his chair, tapping his feet fast staring hard at nothing. His jaw twitched as his mind went black. How dare she deny him, after everything he did to ensure her well being? Usually, all he had to do was the surgery and the rest was left to others, but no, he just _had_ to change his entire schedule just to make time to be with her and she wasn't grateful? And she wanted to pretend the kiss they shared never happened?

He was doing it all for her, and there was no appreciation. There was never any appreciation when it came to her.

Angry eyes went to the picture he had of her. It was from a couple of years before with Felicity standing in a grand hallway, staring at the painting of Proserpine by Dante Gabriel Rossetti. It seemed as if she was looking at her reflection, the sadness from the artwork reflecting in her own eyes. Elias picked up the picture and stared at it, a broken sob escaped his mouth now realizing the expression on her face, the slight frown etched on her.

His mind wondered why he was so intrigued by this one picture of her, there were plenty of others he had with her smiling, albeit other people, but she was happy in them. When it came to looking at the camera her smile would vanish, not liking to see the person behind the device.

He noticed how she would always give other people her smiles, but never him. Couldn't she at least smile at him? He could only remember a ghost of a smile on her face once in a blue moon, but the only thing he knew was that there was no way of him satisfying her. It irked him inside how he would bend over backward for her and she was just never grateful.

Elias always wondered if it had anything to do with their first meeting, did he rub her off the wrong way? He knew he was rough around the edges back then but nothing to throw anyone off of him. 

Well, he was always rough around the edges, but it was mostly due to being so lonely. He was an only child to affluent parents who barely glanced at him unless he did something to make them proud. The Montgomerys were the richest in the town, giving him more spotlight and responsibility than he cared for. He understood the only way to win acceptance and appreciation was by doing good, having others lean on him. He was always the boy in his preparatory to give the helping hand, tutoring others, becoming class president, even joining sports to help win due to his body type despite hating it. Even with being the one others leaned on, his attitude was usually callous, not sure of how to speak to people. Now, his words weren't unkind, but sometimes he had the knack of saying the worst things without meaning to.

He knew he wasn't the most attractive guy around, but it was mostly due to his athleticism and tall stature that girls would even look at him. He was never really interested though, knowing it was all superficial rather than getting to know him.

Many weren't surprised when he decided to join the army right after medical school. Although he wanted to be on the frontline, due to his background in the medical field they thought he would be better as an army doctor. He didn't complain, but it was hard on him. Not being able to do what he wanted was not something Elias was used to. He always got what he wanted, but that was a new experience for him.

Elias saw things many shouldn't have to see, men in such pain and seeing such horrors that shouldn't be revealed to anyone.

When he first came back years before many in his town were proud of him, saluting him for his good deeds for the country. He hated it. He felt like he didn't do much compared to others, even if he had helped to save them.

Elias' parents took him to the country club the first week back, hoping he would meet some girl to like. He was of age now to marry, as his mother would put it, to settle down and start a family of his own. His mother didn't think it would be hard to find someone, even though he wasn't so handsome he came from an affluent family and had a secure, successful job.

But that wasn't what he wanted. Elias wanted someone to like him for being him, not for his money or family status. All the people in his town and the country club only cared for money and status, which he hated.

That fateful night was when he met the Patels.

His father introduced him to Mr.and Mrs.Patel, a couple who came from England ten years before to live closer to family. Mr.Patel was a real estate agent and Mrs.Patel was a lawyer, the couple worked together for their business. They moved to Portsmouth two years before wanting to expand their business. Of their two children, one was in studying law like his mother, while their daughter was going to become an architect.

Elias did listen intently, finding the family interesting and different from the rest of the town. It didn't have anything to do with their recent move into the town or their race standing out, but the down to earth nature both spouses spoke. They didn't exude of the lavish life which everyone else did, they didn't seek to please others by the number of cars they had or how rich their family was back in England (which they weren't).

The problem was that Felicity was never around. Even with her university only being a couple of hours away from the town she lived there on the full academic scholarship which she obtained through her hard work. By the way Mr.Patel was speaking, she sounded enchanting, wanting to make a name for herself rather than waiting on a man to do so. She was said to be a hard worker, even by his parents who met her on several occasions. Her parents weren't the richest around, but they instilled valuable morals in her, working part-time when she was still living in Portsmouth. All he wanted was someone who could care less about his money or status, who would care for him for being himself. Now that, he would care for delicately.

The more he heard about her, the more he wanted to have Felicity for his own.

He made it his goal to become close to the family, hoping to become close to her also in the process. He decided it was time to buy a house and asked Mr.Patel for help. It made the two men closer and made him wish a little that this man was his real father with his advice and wisdom.

And now that she was around, Elias wasn't able to move along the way he wanted. She denied him from the very first day they formally met. She made it hard to even talk with her. Mr.Patel said it was because she had just gotten out of a long term relationship, which boiled his blood more.

He tried to be nice to her, uncharacteristically so much that others made comments about it.

When it first started years before, word went to his parents about it, who wasn't too pleased. Although they liked the Patels they weren't keen to become family. They told him to flat out that there wasn't any way for them to accept it unless forced.

Luckily for Elias, he knew a way to make that happen.

He knew now there wasn't any more time to waste, for months he allowed her to be aloof to the situation at hand. Her parents were allowed to have the time they wanted with her.

Now it was time for things to go back where they needed to be. Felicity needed to be back where she belonged.

Leaning back on his chair, crossing his leg over as his mind calmed down, Elias decided that it was time to take action on what he had planned for a while now.

Yes, it was time to let everything unfold.


	4. IV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Taking a look into Elias' thoughts on Felicity. Maybe they know one another from before?

That evening after contemplating all he wished to do with the situation at hand, Elias decided to head home after running some miles around the park and make some dinner. He needed to let off some steam before making any rash decisions about how to lay out his plan.

He went to his parent's house first to get some things in order, knowing by now the questions they were wanting to ask by now. Even to them, four months was a bit much to allow this charade to go on for. Never in their lives did they once suspect that Elias would act this way, allowing his life to be run over by a girl.

While the Montgomerys found Felicity to be a nice girl, they weren't open to the change in their son's behavior. He was still the strongly opinionated man they grew up to be meticulous, but the cracks started to show with her around. Now, it wasn't her fault she never asked to be in this predicament. Although knowing the truth they couldn't bear to force their hands when it came to Elias. Even with the small cracks now starting to show in his once flawless persona, they couldn't deny his happiness when it came to her.   
  
  


Their dream when Elias started college was for him to find a suitable partner who wasn't after his money, who cared for him in a way they were not able to. They were aware of his callous personality, reminding them of his grandfather. He was a peculiar man with a certain taste that was frowned upon. Elias was like his grandfather in many ways, but there was a hope that not everything he got from his grandfather would take hold.

There was a time they worried that no one would pique their son's interest, that maybe their affluent family line would end with him. When first hearing about his interest in the Patel girl, they didn't know what to make of it. Although they allowed him to think that they didn't want to have anything to do with the girl's family, the truth was it was his tendencies which caused distress.

Based on the rumors going around, he already wasn't on the girl's good side, probably scaring her off a bit. His actions weren't condoned by them but they knew better than to confront it. His anger could be sparked easily when he was stressed, and with his job alone stress levels were high.   
  
  


They could only imagine what he did to release that stress.

The Montgomerys remember meeting Felicity years before, she had just turned sixteen when the Patels moved into Portsmouth. Like the rest of her family, she was polite and well-spoken. What they weren't expecting was her intellect to surpass many they knew, within minutes of meeting her that fateful afternoon at the country club.

Instead of participating in the sports tournaments or luncheon for the young girls, she sat down with Richard and Lynda Montgomery to speak about the history of world leaders such as Churchill and Bonaparte, Felicity making a legitimate argument of how great Napoleon Bonaparte was with his take on religious freedom and helping the economy of the country. Even if they were at an impasse, the older couple couldn't deny how her words were food for thought. The conversation smoothly transitioned towards Ayn Rand and how her famed story The Fountainhead inspired Felicity to pursue architecture.

By the end of the night, they too fell in love with her ideologies, but like all things in the world, it would be too good to be true that she would have become their daughter-in-law. They knew this would be the type of girl that Elias would go for, but she mustn't end up with him. Though it hurt them so Richard and Lynda never mentioned the young girl once to their son whenever he would inquire about the town.   
  
  


So it would be right to say they weren't pleased to find out how the young girl caught the attention of their son.   
  
  
  
  
  


Now, watching him leave after talking about plans for next week, they pondered on what scheme he was planning with the position Felicity was in.  
  
  


It wasn't as if they would be able to do anything to stop him though.

~~~

After heading home, Elias ate some dinner and turned down for the night. His two-story house was massive but empty. He made sure everything was in order before taking a hot shower to wash off all that had happened for the day. He ended up just standing in the shower for some time, thinking about his failure concerning Felicity. The feeling of hot water burning skin didn't bother him, his mind was thinking towards what his next steps should be.

After twenty minutes he got out the shower, put on pajama bottoms, and went to his king-sized bed, sitting up holding a book in his hand; a book of Greek mythologies. Although his eyes were scanning the words over and over, his mind couldn't register them. It shouldn't matter though he had read it hundreds of times since he was a young boy.

It bothered him that she didn't even remember him, although it was years ago they met and spoke, she barely even recognized him. He wasn't used to people forgetting him, albeit a girl like her. It irked him that he knew her so well but she saw him like a vapor in the wind. Elias shook his head, he knew it wasn't her fault. Besides, he did look a bit different when he had recently arrived back from his tours.   
  
  


Setting the book down, Elias recalls the first time he formally met her, even when she didn't know who he was.

~~~

Years Ago

_He had been back from his second tour for three months. It didn't take long to secure a job becoming a surgeon at the hospital, his work was stellar enough that there was talk of him becoming head of the orthopedic department. It was the day before Thanksgiving, he had gone to visit his uncle in New York, visiting an art gallery and watching a ballet at the persistence of his aunt. They had no children of their own so he was their medium of spoiling a child, even though he was a fully grown man._

_He was at the train station, taking a six-hour trip back to New Hampshire through Amtrak. It was cold and time was ticking slowly._

_He watched as everyone was in their world via the small screens they were holding in their hands. It was as if the world became void outside the smartphones. He made a point to not use his phone unless necessary, taking in the peaceful air around him instead. Dark eyes wandered the many figures spread out around the station, freezing when taking notice of one petite figure on a phone call._   
  
  
  
  


_"Yes, mother I am fine.....I do have the ticket right in my hand, and yes I have all my identification secured." Voice was soft, but earnest in not just brushing off the person on the other side of the line. The girl was bending her foot sideways slightly, her face turned to the other side so he couldn't see her well._

_"Mom, I'm eighteen I think I can handle a train ride by myself. I'm an adult now don't you trust me to make good decisions?" She turned around as she was talking, now facing a taller girl next to her. She playfully rolled her eyes, "Mom, it's just a six-hour trip I'll be home before you know it. Besides, you wanted to ensure my safety with first class right? It's not as if someone will harm me on the train, rather I think I'll be lonely without meeting new people." She stood quiet for a bit before responding, "I'll see you soon mom. Love you."_

_The girl finally hung up the phone and looked towards her friend again, giving her a hug, "Thanks for being here. I'll miss you so much!!" The taller girl laughed, "You make it sound as if we're not gonna see each other next week. Just let me know when you get off alright? I need to make sure you're safe for your mom." The young girl gave off a snort, "Gosh, you're all the same. I'm not some delicate flower I can handle myself."_

_It was then, he became entranced with her when she finally turned in his direction._

_Elias felt the world stop around him as he laid his eyes on her. Objectively, she was not of supermodel status but was very beautiful in a sort of homely way. To him_ _,_ _she was the most beautiful thing he ever saw. There was a softness to her face which showed her shedding adolescence, a shyness shown as she looked down while pulling a strand of her hair back. Her lips had burgundy lipstick, and her eyes were a chocolate brown that held an innocence which was something he hadn't seen in years._

_She barely glanced at him but there he was still staring at her. The only thing to break his trance was the sound of the train arriving._

_He watched as she went in first, leaving her friend behind. Acting in a cool manner, he too went into the train. The seats in first class began to fill quickly, the secluded cabins filling with families or older men_ _that_ _he had no desire to be around. He saw one cabin closed and decided to try and see if it was empty for his use._

_The reality was better, seeing the young girl from before. She now had earphones on, long jacket off and a book in her hand. She sat on the left side in the small cabin._

_He cleared his throat, watching her eyes look up curiously towards him, "Is there a chance you have space to spare? Most of the other cars are filled with old men who are snoring loud or rambunctious families."_

_Her mouth was agape but the slight nod she gave plastered a smile on his face before entering and taking a seat diagonally across from her. She went back into her own world again as he sat there silently, so he decided to close his eyes a bit before attempting any conversation with her._   
  


_About an hour into the ride back home, he woke up from his power nap and looked to see if the girl was still there. To his relief she was, now sketching something into the medium-sized sketchbook. The music from her headphones blared, allowing him to hear bits of the piece being played. A small smile played on his lips hearing a familiar tune._

_"So you like listening to Tchaikovsky?"_

_~_   
  


_She barely heard the man say anything to her if it wasn't for her seeing his body slightly turned in her direction more. Although she had no initial intention speaking to him, she took off her headphones with a curiously raised eyebrow, "I'm sorry?"_

_The smile he had turned to a lopsided grin, "I asked if you were listening to Tchaikovsky?"_

_"Oh" Her confused face turned into a relief, as though she thought he would ask something weird, "I am, helps me do my projects better."_

_His eyes looked towards her drawing, it seemed to be an architectural design of a building. It looked beautiful, one wouldn't suspect it was drawn on a train with the perfect lines and curves on the paper._

_"Were you listening to Swan Lake?" The young girl's eyes lit up wondering how he knew, "Yes, I was. Out of all his compositions, I am biased to listen to Swan Lake a bit more. Are you some Tchaikovsky aficionado or a good guesser?" Her body language also changed, book starting to close as she crossed one leg over the other, turning her body towards his. It was obvious to him that he got her interest._

_"No, I wouldn't say that. It just so happen that I just saw the ballet last night with some family. Seeing it live is worth everything compared to PBS."_   
  
  


_Elias never knew what luck struck him that night, or at least what he thought was luck. Who would've thought his dream girl would also be interested in the ballet, and the one he just saw?_

_"That sounds lovely. I hope one day that I too could one day see it."_

_"Is it your first time traveling alone?" She was taken aback from his abrupt change of topic. She brushed her fingers through her hair, fixing her long bangs._

_"It is, I'm heading back home for Thanksgiving." She took notice of how intently he looked at her like he wanted to know more about her. Felicity wasn't used to anyone giving her such attention other than her boyfriend, so it gave her an odd feeling. "Are you also heading back for the holiday?"_   
  
  


_"Yes, I came to New York for the weekend. I live out in Portsmouth."_

_"That's where I'm heading." His eyes lit up hearing her words, "You don't say! If you don't mind me asking what's your name? I don't think I would've forgotten such a beautiful girl." She looked down giving an awkward laugh hearing his words, he was trying to flirt with her._

_Even if she didn't have a boyfriend she did not doubt that she wouldn't be physically attracted to him. He had odd features, pale skin with a long nose that almost seemed twisted to one side slightly. There were several beauty marks on his face, and his lips were a bit too full, even the Clark Gable mustache couldn't hide it. He did have nice eyes though, and his long hair looked soft and full._   
  
  


_"Well, my name's Felicity." She gave him her hand to shake politely, "Pretty name, I'm Elias". The handshake was meant to be brief, but he held onto her hand a moment too long. She pulled away from it a little before he let go._

_Hearing her name gave him butterflies in the pit of his stomach, he knew this was Patel's daughter, the girl with no face he had obsessed for months over._

_"Since you were only visiting New York, was there anything else you did other than watching the ballet?"_

_Without realizing it he somehow became closer to her, his long legs now slightly bumping into hers. "I did visit some museums, actually thinking about it now I'm meant to buy a painting from an auction that was held."_

_All she heard from his statement was that he was rich, extremely rich if he could afford to buy a painting. "That sounds interesting. You must have money if you can afford to do all that in a course of a few days."_

_He shook his head, "I wouldn't say that. I'm a doctor, an orthopedic surgeon to be exact. I came to visit my uncle since I was deployed in Iraq for some time." Her eyes widened a bit, "Oh; I'm sorry for my assumption. Thank you for your sacrifice for our country." A soft sigh escaped his lips, "No, don't be sorry. It's not as if I was able to do a lot anyway, I was just a doctor there."_   
  
  


_"That isn't true, helping to save the lives of men and women who are loyal to this country is a lot, you were saving our defense line." Everything in Elias paused, many people would give off an awkward laugh hearing his self-deprecating comment of how little he thought he did on his tours, but she managed to make him feel revived, hope that he was worth more than he thought._

_"That's kind of you to say, thank you."_

_There was some snow falling, it wasn't a sight many saw in November around the Northeast._

_This was the time for many firsts when it came to Elias._   
  
  


_He was going to speak again, but the speaker overhead beat him to it, "Good evening ladies and gentlemen. We apologize for disrupting your evening but we will be making a stop in Hartford to refuel our engine. We apologize for the inconvenience this train will be delayed for an hour."_   
  
  


_Within five minutes the train stopped in a station at Hartford, Connecticut. Many passengers decided to take advantage of this to have some fresh air outside, Elias included. He looked towards the young girl who became busy in her world once more._

_"Do you want to grab something to eat?" She looked up at him before shaking her head, "It's alright, thank you. I have some snacks to munch on."_

_He held his massive hand out to her, "I promise I don't bite. You know my name and occupation so there's no way I would try to do anything to harm you."_

_"I only know your first name"_

_"Montgomery. Elias Montgomery, do you trust me now?" His hand was still waiting for her to reach for it as if he knew that she would take it. He didn't sound impatient, but his insistent nature did rub her off the wrong way. Felicity wasn't used to anyone ordering her around, no less a stranger who she met barely an hour ago._   
  
  


_She looked up at his eyes, there was a resolved look in them. It was then she realized he wasn't going to accept no for an answer. Hesitant, she took his hand and got up. His head nearly touched the doorway, while she barely passed his chest in height. Smirking now, he let her don her jacket before deciding to take her to a fancy restaurant not too far from the station._   
  
  


_It didn't help that he had ordered for her, but she bit her tongue for that, the menu was in French and she didn't have a clue of what anything was._

_"So, Felicity, since you now know so much about me it's only fair for you to share a bit about yourself."_

_She crossed her arms, he took it to mean she didn't want to open up to him._

_"I am a first-year student at NYU, an architect major. I used to live in New York with my family for eight years before we moved down to Portsmouth. I have my boyfriend of two years also going to school with me so I guess there isn't much left to say about me." Maybe she meant to throw in her boyfriend as a jab towards him, but it probably gave him a clear understanding of how taken she was - with someone else._

_Although she hadn't noticed it, his eyes flickered hearing that she was with somebody. Of course, a girl as smart and pretty as she wouldn't be single for long._

_Suddenly, the ambiance they were able to maintain for the past hour went away quickly, awkwardness ensued until the appetizers arrived. Although he would usually eat in a wolffish manner, in front of her he tried to eat at a slower pace._

_He hated how natural she looked just eating food without any stiff movements. She managed to do everything smoothly, and despite how people would think he also did things in a smooth manner there was much overthought as he made his actions._

_Finished with their warmup and waiting on the entrees, Elias' hand went down to his coat pocket to grab his phone. His fingers brushed along pages and a thought came to mind._

_He pulled out the booklet, "Are you familiar with classic art?" She nodded, not sure to where this would be heading. His hand pushed the black booklet towards her, "One of the events I went to was an auction on art pieces. Purchasing one would mean giving money to charity and I didn't want to turn it down. Unfortunately, I'm not one for an artistic eye, would you be able to help me pick one?"_

_It was a lie, he had a spectacular eye for beautiful things, artistic pleasantries. If it would allow him to speak to her for a while longer though he would feign incapabilities._

_She nodded, taking a hold of the booklet. For several minutes he watched intensely as she skimmed through some photos, her interest waning as each page was turned. There was a pang of worry hitting his gut seeing that she was nearing the end of the book._

_All hope was nearly lost until her fingers stopped, her eyes zeroing in on one image. After her long stare, he cleared his throat, "May I presume we have a winner?"_

_She looked up at him flustered, a shy laugh came out soon after. "I wouldn't call it a winner but it is interesting" she handed the book to him so he could see the painting she was looking at. There was a woman, donned in a vibrant sea-green dress holding a bitten fruit. Her eyes looked downward, a lost look was seen._

_It was beautiful._

_He looked down a little to see the name, Proserpine by Dante Gabriel Rossetti._

_"You know that's the Roman name for Persephone?" He looked up at her statement, curious to where she was going with it._

_"It's clear the painter was trying to convey her loss of hope, being put into a situation which only caused her demise."_

_Elias nodded along, "Yes, I recall the story of Persephone and Hades; many consider it romantic."_

_A snort came out of her mouth, causing him to raise his eyebrow in surprise. "That will never be a love story. She was sold to the king of the underworld by her father, and with the one clause made to help her get out Hades tricked her forcing her to be with him."_

_"Well, I wouldn't say it's all bad. She only has to stay with him some of the time and she became a powerful goddess. I wouldn't call that so bad."_

_It was then when he saw it, the fire in her eyes. It was vibrant and titillating, he wanted to scorch it out of her._

_"She was forced into a predicament which she never wanted. She never asked to be the goddess of the underworld, her freedom was taken from her time and time again. And besides, she never loved him. No matter what modern retelling try to twist it as she never wanted to be with him."_

_"So what you're saying is if you were handed that power you wouldn't take it?"_

_"Never, I value my autonomy too much to allow that."_

_"Interesting" He didn't say a word after that, just looked at her. It was clear the conversation got under her skin by her quickening breath and the frown on her face. There was a pang of guilt hitting him now, but it was soft compared to the triumph from this win._

_He looked down at the painting much more, "Would you say you like this painting?" Her eyes finally made contact with him once again, "It is a beautiful rendition of Persephone."_

_"I'll buy it then" he took notice of her hand forming into a fist, allowing him to make a ghost of a smirk._

_"Why? You think it will impress me that you can afford it?"_

_"No, because it's beautiful, as you also admitted. What's the use of beautiful things if one can't possess it?"_

_"You speak as if it's just something you can own."_

_"It is something I can own once I buy it." Conviction crossed her eyes hearing his words, "I feel sorry for you then if you think you can just buy things you want to possess."_

_"Why? With money, you can buy anything."_

_"No, not everything; you can't buy a family, happiness, love...many other things which are essential to not having emptiness in your heart."_

_He was silent for a moment, contemplating the point she made. He was intrigued seeing the determination in her eyes, daring him to say she was wrong. " What if I say I could buy these things, would you believe me?"_

_"I would believe that you think you've bought these things, but the reality is that you're a deplorable man who believes in being a master to his world, and controls things around him."_

_They would've continued, but the entrees finally arrived. The rest of dinner was silent, the only other time they spoke was when the check came. Elias took out his black card to pay, but Felicity also took out her credit card._

_"You don't have to worry I'll pay for it."_

_A frustrated look passed through her, "I can afford my meal, I don't need anyone to buy it for me."_

_That was the second time she made a jab at him in the course of the dinner, he kept an inner tally. It was getting harder to keep his cool, but instead of letting his jaw clench he closed his eyes for a moment and opened them with a smile, "If you insist."_

_So that night they both paid for their separate meals._

_The ride back to Portsmouth was quiet after that, she went straight back to her music and drawing as he sat there, mentally beating himself up for being such an ass._

_Before leaving he attempted to make an apology, "Look, Miss Patel, I sincerely apologize if I cause any offense to you it wasn't my intention."_

_Felicity looked at him, face stoic before giving the smallest of her smiles, "It's fine, people talk and heated debates are bound to happen. Thank you for taking me for dinner tonight."_

_They were both now walking out of the train. He returned it with a smile, "Of course. If you would allow me I could take you home, it isn't too far?"_

_She shook her head, "Thank you, but it's quite alright. I have family picking me up so I'll be off now. It was an experience meeting you Mr.Montgomery."_

_"Likewise"_

_With that, she went off to look for her father and brother who weren't that far down in the station. She was happy to finally be back home, wanting nothing more than to forget the last couple of hours._

_One question kept bothering her though, how did he know her last name?_

~~~

It wasn't until recalling the memory now that Elias remembered his own mistake, calling her by her last name even though she never mentioned it. He smacked himself in the head, wondering how he could've made such a mistake. It didn't matter now though it isn't as if she remembers it. 

Still lost in his thoughts, he nearly missed the noise coming from his nightstand. Coming back to reality, he turned and picked up the baby monitor. 

Crying was heard. Promptly he got up and went straight down to the room of the sound, quickly picking up the baby inside. 

The child was wailing loudly, it was the teething period for him so the pain was inevitable. In his big arms, Elias thought of his son as doll-like, wiping the tears from the amber eyes.

"Shh...shh...it's alright Zachariah. Daddy's here for you." Of course, that didn't help out the child one bit. Putting the baby's head on his shoulder, he felt the moisture from the spittle as the child latched into the exposed skin on his shoulder.

Tenderly, he rubbed his son's back while walking back and forth a bit. It was hard doing this alone, he had to admit. He brushed his fingers through his son's thick black hair. 

"Your mom will be back soon don't worry" 

As if hearing those words like comfort, the child soon fell asleep. Instead of putting him back into the crib, Elias held unto his child deciding to sit on the rocking chair.

It didn't take long for him to also fall asleep, a small smile formed on his face thinking of happier times.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all, hope your day/night is going well!   
> So we finally have an extended view from Elias' side and the potential first meeting between him and Felicity? What do you all think, was the flashback accurate or did he embellish in his mind? 
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos and sub <3


	5. V

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A dinner party takes place and the truth is revealed (well some of it)

Since that Wednesday Dr.Montgomery had asked her for coffee and she rejected him, Felicity made an effort to try and do things for herself outside of therapy. She tried to walk and stretch her muscle a bit more on the days home.   
  
  


Now at therapy things didn't change too much, he was still talkative and pretended like that day didn't happen. His smiles weren't as frequent though, and something in her missed seeing the lopsided grin.

Guilt surrounded her constantly in his presence seeing that he was still nice to her despite all that had happened. She started to smile at him more and get involved in his conversations, even if it wasn't anything too deep Felicity attempted to at least show that she respected him a little.   
  
  


Elias knew all she was doing to make an effort with him was out of pity for him over anything else, but his heart skipped whenever she would smile at him. The month was almost over, meaning that soon she would be out of his sight and living life "back" on her own. Her walking was getting a lot better now, progress being much quicker than he anticipated. She was probably working hard at home to get away from therapy.   
  
  


He didn't want her to leave, not yet.   
  
  


The Patels and his own parents were keen to have dinner to celebrate Felicity's recovery and to properly reintroduce their children; now was the time Elias believed was right to do so. He wasn't going to let her know, why would he? Felicity would probably find something else to do if she knew.   
  
  


After their session that Friday, he felt a renewed energy in him. He watched her leave walking without a limp anymore.

It was time to get cleaned up for the evening ahead.   
  
  
  
  
  


When Felicity reached home, the smell of food was strong as she opened the door. It was around 3 in the afternoon and it wasn't normal for her mother to be cooking anything. Walking slowly to the kitchen, her stomach grumbled wanting nothing more than to dig into the freshly made macaroni pie.   
  
  


She started to take a plate, but a smack on her hand stopped her. "Don't even think about it Felicity that's for this evening." Shaking her hand, she turned to her mother, "What's so special about tonight?"   
  
  


Her mother shook her head, "You're father forgot to tell you didn't he? We're heading to the Montgomery's for dinner tonight." While her daughter stood there in shock, Sonia was busy checking on her pot roast and rack of lamb to make everything perfect.   
  
  


"D-do we have to go tonight? Can't you, dad, and Nigel just go without me? It's been some time since I've been alone." If Felicity could take this as an opportunity to have peace she would be glad. For the past four months, she's been surrounded by people, whether her parents or the doctor, all taking care of her in their own way. Space was what she needed right now, and by the looks of it, she was a couple of weeks away from downing some bottles of wine by herself to reflect on everything.

But of course, the reality was bitter towards Felicity. Her mother gave her a disgruntled look, "You know that's not how we do things. Look, Dr.Montgomery has done a lot to help your recovery and there's nothing better than having a nice meal appreciation. Besides, he and his parents have been nothing but kind to your father and I since we moved here."   
  
  


She swallowed some air, suddenly hating how nice her parents could be. Dr.Montgomery was always invading her space outside their home, and now being mingled into her personal life brought things to a whole different level. She never knew that her parents were this close to him. How old was he anyway to get along with her parents so well?  
  
  


"Here, help me out a bit then take a shower and wear something nice." Knowing better than to say no, she did as her mother asked.

"Actually, if you're up for it maybe you could make your famous Sachertorte? It's been a while and I'm more than sure the Montgomerys would appreciate it." Felicity nodded, not really finding a reason to deny the request.

If there was anything she was good at it was taking orders.   
  
  


It had been a while since she last remembered baking the dessert, but her mind was still finding the ingredients and technique as sharp as ever. It felt nice to bake again, using that hobby to release her emotions. With all that had happened, she found herself quickly occupied in making the dish perfect, needing to impress Mr.and Mrs. Montgomery despite the risk of enchanting Dr.Montgomery even more in the process.

Within the next three hours, all the food was ready and set to stay warm in the oven. Felicity took a long shower, trying to ease her mind of what could happen in the next couple of hours having dinner with Dr.Montgomery.   
  
  
  
  
  


She would have to make sure not to sit too close to him, but it wasn't as if he made any advances towards her other than asking her out. Despite him not being her favorite person he didn't do anything to warrant bad thoughts of what he could be. She knew at this point she needed to also talk, her parents would call her out if she was too quiet at the dinner table.

Since her accident Felicity didn't find any reasons to dress up, leaving her with too many choices of what to wear to her first formal dinner since she could last remember; she couldn't. She decided to wear a velvet black dress which reached slightly above her calves, the straps thin so she wore a slightly sheer white long sleeve billowy blouse underneath, covering her neck a bit also. She looked down at her scarred leg, a frown etching her face suddenly wanting to change her outfit.

No, she told herself, this scar wasn't going to define her in any way. At least now she was capable to walk up and down the stairs without issue. At least now she could properly move her leg unlike months before.

What took long for Felicity now was her hair, wanting nothing less than perfect. She decided to do a loose Dutch braid on her left side, stopping at the nape of her neck and allowing the rest of her hair to be left open and curl slightly. She pulled the braids lightly to give them volume, fixing the baby hairs on the frame of her face.

Small pearls were placed on both earrings, she wasn't one for jewelry but they did add a touch of softness to her outfit. Her makeup was mostly light, focusing on wearing dark red lipstick and having combed her full eyebrows. 

She was pleased with her look at the end, and she could've honestly cared less for what others thought of her. Felicity dressed for herself and no one else. 

Having heard her mother calling from the other side of the door, she smoothed out her dress before grabbing her purse and phone before walking downstairs. 

She felt as if she was walking down for prom night the way all three family members looked at her. She playfully rolled her eyes at the memory from years before.

Her brother gave a low whistle, "It's still good to know you haven't lost your touch in the last couple of months. Thought everything got fried in that brain of yours seeing how drab you dressed." She gave him a light punch to his arm, deciding to give a semi twirl to show the bounce of the dress. 

She couldn't remember the last time having a happy time with her family in this way. It was strange it felt like years had passed since being with them rather than months.

What took Felicity off guard was the most in her father's eyes. In all her years of being alive she never once saw her father cry for anything, so seeing it now brought up a heart-wrenching emotion she didn't know how to describe. Quick to action, she gave her father a tight hug, tears threatening to also escape her eyes at any given moment.

"Don't worry dad everything's alright", her father pulled back slightly, his hand lovingly going to her face. Tears fell out then, not able to contain himself for his daughter anymore.

She felt overwhelmed, not too sure of how her being able to walk brought out such a reaction from her father. After some moments he finally let her go, her mother also hugging her before deeming it was time to head out. Felicity put on her black flats (being the only formal shoes she could wear for now) before closing the door behind herself.

It didn't take long to reach the Montgomery's home, which was big and oozed old money. Outside it looked like a three-story manor completed with the patterned roundabout and garden in the front. It was surprising to see that the Montgomery's had no servants of their own, which would seem to be a barbaric idea this day and age.

The Patels were welcomed by Mr.Montgomery, or Richard as he liked his friends to call him. He took them to the parlor, which was modernized, and allowed Mrs.Patel to meet with his wife as they both got dinner set.

Felicity found herself at the edge of one upholstered sweetheart couch, feeling small around the oversized furniture. Her father and brother went to the larger couch and Mr.Montgomery took one of the two claw foot upholstered seats meant for a single person.

He quickly greeted her father and brother before heading straight to her as the person of the topic, "Miss Felicity, how have you been doing? It's been a while since I've last seen you." She remembered the conversations she held with the older man and his wife while she still lived in Portsmouth. He indulged in her conversations containing history and relatively modern world politics of the last two centuries. It was a wonder she never knew he had a son.

She mustered a small smile, "I'm doing pretty well Mr.Montgomery"

"Richard, please- only my clients call me Mr.Montgomery."

She raised her eyebrows slightly but nodded, "Well, Richard, I've been recovering at a fast pace. I'm hoping within the next few weeks to move back down to New York and start my internship there."

Maybe she was looking too hard, but Felicity swore she saw a slight change in his eyes, his smile leaving for just a moment before regaining his composure. "Of course, I'm glad to hear that you still have your goals. That's the thing about you I like the most my dear, nothing can stop you from reaching your utmost potential. No one nor anything could stop you." Now her own eyes creased hearing that it was worded oddly. 

She would've responded but it was interrupted by the footsteps of someone entering the room. Thinking it could've been her mother she turned around. What she saw left her speechless. 

It was Dr.Montgomery dressed to the nines. She was used to seeing him in his scrubs, hair grown out, and face never shy of his goatee. Now he was wearing a dark navy suit, showing off his broad shoulders and trim waist, body firm and packed with muscles. His hair was cut a couple of inches barely covering the tips of his ears, still hiding them enough for no one to gawk at them. Hair was brushed back, black thickness looked perfect without a strand misplaced. His face was shaven clean, taking years off of him. His lips seem bigger though, instead of a lopsided smile she became used to seeing there was a pleasant smirk. One could say he looked the most handsome like this, but who didn't look nice cleaned up?

Even though it was her first time seeing him like this, there was an odd familiarity as if she should expect to see the doctor to look refined.

In his big hands, Felicity almost mistook what was in his arms as a doll, when in fact it was a sleeping child. Curiously, she stared at the tan skin and dark hair lying comfortably in the crook of Dr.Montgomery's left arm. 

  
She was so involved looking at the child she never paid attention to the stare of the doctor to her form.

"Elias, it's good to see you made it in time. I see the young tyke must've had a long afternoon." The doctor turned to his father and gave a slight nod, "Good evening father. I wouldn't say he had too terrible of a time, sleeping pretty well for the last couple of hours. He should awaken soon." Instead of walking to the next single chair to sit by his father, Dr.Montgomery went towards the sweetheart couch and sat barely a foot away from Felicity, his hand adjusting to comfort his child. Richard and her own father soon began their own conversation while her brother Nigel went to the kitchen to help the two mothers with dinner. Now Felicity was left defenseless against the attentions of Dr.Montgomery. For a few moments, they sat in complete silence, him rocking the child in his arms while she tried to look elsewhere.   
  
  


Having her curiosity getting the best of her, she stared straight at the baby, her eyes just couldn't tear away. The baby boy looked like an angel, soft brown curls forming on his head, pink lips puckered slightly and eyelashes were long. It went beyond her seeing that the child had a complexion closer to her own skin rather than the paleness of Dr. Montgomery.  
  
  


Maybe that's why he was so interested in her, she looked the most similar to whoever was the mother of the baby.

"Would you like to hold him?" Her eyes darted and looked into the eyes of the doctor, "No, thank you Dr.Montgomery but I don't think that would be a good idea." Felicity wasn't too sure as to why distance was to be kept in her mind, she was usually very fond of children and they tend to also like her.

"Please, we are not part of a doctor/patient relationship outside the hospital, besides your therapy is almost finished. Call me Elias from now on." His words didn't have malice, but the grin on his face said otherwise. It was if he knew something she didn't, and if there was one thing Felicity didn't like it would be not knowing what others were planning. "He's waking up now, don't worry he'll be alright in your arms." Still hesitant, she silently agreed realizing that he may want to just rest his arms a bit. She didn't think the mother was in the picture, so rationally thinking it was easy to understand that being a full-time surgeon and a single father to a baby was hard.

Careful taking the small child in her arms, an involuntary smile came across her face seeing the eyes of the child flutter open. The amber eyes shining through was the only way to really know that Dr.Montgomery was the father. The child was tucked tightly in the crook of her arms, she lightly rocked him back and forth.

"His name is Zachariah", she looked in the eyes of the doctor for the first time with a full smile on her face. She personally thought the name made the baby sound old, but already her mind came up with a nickname.   
  
  


"Zach" She moved her finger towards the baby who quickly latched his small hand around. She kept her initial thought to herself, really wanting to say 'Zachy Poo'. There was no particular reason for it, just that it felt _right_ and her mind was oddly quick to say that name. It didn't seem right to call someone else's child by such a nickname though, especially for a child she just met.

His hand felt small around her own finger, soft and there was a ticklish sensation as he brought her finger to his lips, wanting to suck it. "How old is he?"

"Eighteen months" Felicity always wondered why some people would choose to age their child by saying the months within the first two years of birth. She understood for the first twelve months with the rapid growth while after it should be how one would regularly aged.

"Is there someone around to help? I suppose it would be hard to raise a baby on your own otherwise."

A silent moment passed, by the look in the doctor's eyes, it seemed like he was hiding something. There was conflict reflecting in amber like he was unsure whether to share what information he had with her.   
  
  


"There are some people around, mostly my parents when I'm at the hospital. Once things get back into place his care shouldn't be a problem anymore." His smile was controlled, he seems calculated in his response not giving away too much. Furrowing her eyebrows, she looked back at the child with questioning eyes; what could he possibly mean by that? 

After minutes passing Nigel came back, "Dinner's ready to be served so let's all reconvene in the dining room." The two elder men left first but giving a second thought of leaving her alone with the doctor and his child. Felicity was going to give the child back to him, but he had chosen to rise and give a hand for her to hold probably knowing that she wasn't capable of getting off the seat fully on her own yet.

She felt somewhat weak in this state having him constantly help her out.

The short walk to the dining room became awkward for her quickly as she was still holding Zach in her arms and the doctor, who she should make an effort of calling Elias at this point, was extremely close to her. She felt the heat of his hand radiating close to her back, not quite touching her but its presence was still there.

Entering the grand room, Felicity was quick to notice how full the table was, leaving an almost perfect space just for the three of them. Her heart started to race a bit and queasiness started to settle in her, there was something up.   
  


Were the two families trying to work together to set them up?

It was unsettling, why go through such lengths to put up this charade? Her body was on autopilot, going through the polite motions and words her family instilled in her for the past nineteen years.

She sat between Elias and the baby, her brother not too far away. Her eyes looked at her family in an accusing manner, what were they trying to do?   
  


Dinner started unceremoniously, food being passed around. The main discussion was planning the next big event at the country club, being Easter it would have to be a big luncheon and the semi-annual golf tournament.

What sounded off to her was hearing events being told about 'last year' which she couldn't recall at all. She would've said something about it but seeing that everyone else was able to remember she chucked it up to be that she simply wasn't around.

And besides, at the moment, her mind was on food. The problem with lamb was due to the fat rendered in there were some pieces of meat that were hard to cut into. She was trying her best but nothing was working. She was just gonna go leave it alone, going to another direction of the meat but she saw hands reaching over to her plate. 

Using his own eating utensils, Elias went to cut her meat. He wasn't really thinking when doing it only seeing her small struggle. He wasn't expecting all conversation to cease and feeling the weight of six pairs of eyes staring him down in an incredulous manner.

All Felicity thought was _gross._ Why would she want to eat that now he touched it with his own fork? Her eyes turned to the piece of lamb with a defeated sigh escaping her lips.

A small laugh escaped from the head of the table, Richard was trying to ease the awkwardness. "This reminds me about that discussion we had about the social responsibility of micro cleanliness with the rise of the flu last year, don't you remember Felicity?"

Her face contoured from being weirded out to confused, "I apologize but I don't."

The awkwardness never ceased. 

No one was going to move unless Felicity did, or it seemed to appear that way.

"Felicity, have you ever considered that over the time you were unconscious after the accident that something else may have happened...say in your mind." She scoffed turning her head towards her brother, "Nigel don't be ridiculous I wasn't unconscious for long."

"Felicity you were in a coma for nearly two weeks. We didn't think you would wake up." Her eyes darted around the room, was it appropriate to have this conversation around the Montgomerys?

A nervous laugh escaped her lips, "Don't be so dramatic Nigel I don't think I lost any memories. It's only been a few months anyway." 

"What year do you think it is?"

"What?"

Her brother never looked so serious in his life, "Tell me what year you think it is."

"It's 2016" she remembered looking at her laptop earlier and it said March 15, 2016. 

"Felicity it's 2020."

A giggle erupted from her, earning a giggle from the child next to her too. "This is crazy." She turned her eyes to look at the elders around her, her laughter dying down seeing the worried glances they cast her way.

"It's not 2020 Nigel stop trying to joke with me right now."

"He's right, it isn't 2016 anymore." 

  
Her head turned in the direction of the doctor, but she didn't look up at him. She couldn't bear seeing the look of pity on his face.

"Then why does my laptop and phone, hell even my emails show its 2016?" 

Her brother was quick to speak up again, "Well that's an easy thing to fix on the laptop we made sure to do that before you woke up. Hearing what may have happened we didn't want you to be too shocked, you did just come out of an accident." 

"And saying it now if of all times wouldn't shock me?" Felicity's head started to pulse in pain, probably working hard to recall all which they were speaking of. How could they have lie to her all this time? "So you all are trying to convince me that I lost four years of memories?"

Her eyes went to her own parents, her father's hand began to tremble with a fork at hand and her mother's eyes started to mist. They couldn't bear to bring up the truth to her themselves.

"There's nothing to really convince. It's just the truth." Her confusion turned to anger quickly hearing the doctor's words.

"You out of all people shouldn't be telling me anything!"

"Felicity..." her father's voice sounded weary, instead of admonishing his daughter for being so disrespectful, he sounded like he was in fear for the situation.

Quickly she turned to her father, "No dad, it's not fair!"

Her eyes went back to the doctor, whose jaw was set firm, clenching it tightly hearing her voice rise against him.

"This man thinks he could waltz into my life and constantly make advances which aren't welcomed by me. He thinks that spending time with me at therapy or smiling at me will make me want to be with him but it won't!" Her body heated with anger as she looked at him with pure anger, embarrassed that she had to reveal her feelings this way, "I understand that you helped to save my life, and I'll forever be grateful for that, but I don't like you in that way. Please, just leave me alone. Who do you think you are to just step into my life this way?"

A chair scraped the floor and someone stood up hastily, "Felicity! Stop that this instant! How dare you disrespect him?"

The girl watched her father with wide eyes, surprised that he would speak to her in such an angry tone. She wasn't the villain here!

"Why? Dad he's been borderline harassing me ever since I woke up at the hospital, I think I have a right to tell him to leave me alone." 

Her father looked down at the table than away to left, not able to face his daughter, "You can't do that." 

"And why not?"   
  
  
  
  


"Because he's your husband."  
  
  
  



	6. VI

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A trip to the lawyer's office reveals a bit more into the terms of Felicity and Elias' marriage. What happens now?

**_ Anderson and Co Law Firm _ **

Dark brown eyes scan over the wooden forest green sign, above the words written in golden Gatsby font, was an image of lady Justice holding the balance.

"So is he Anderson or Co?" Elias turned his head down towards the short figure of his  _ wife _ . His thick eyebrows furrowed at her question, "What do you mean?" 

"The lawyer, is this friend of yours Anderson or co?" She refused to spare him a glance, her stomach dropping low in anticipation for the truth to be revealed to her. After the dinner from the night before, her head was pulsing, wanting answers. According to her father, and all other members in that dining room, she was married to Dr.Montgomery, and his baby boy was also hers. 

How could she not remember giving birth? Felicity felt sorrow thinking about all she lost, the joy of feeling a baby grow in her. She wanted to remember the little changes her body made that now made her body feel foreign to her. She was only a soul inside a body, distant in realms.

Some might say the fit she carried in the dining room after hearing the news was unnecessary, and maybe it was excessive. She had slammed the table and bolted out without hearing the pleading words of her mother and the Montgomerys. Her mind was red, anger consumed it for the past sixteen hours at the deceit her family cloaked her with for the past few months. 

Elias had made no move towards her that night. Even now, in the late morning in front of the lawyer's office, he was nothing beyond gentlemanly. Her father convinced her to listen to the lawyer, that he knew more than anyone just how real her marriage was. If no person could convince her, then maybe the official documents would.

Haphazardly, she dressed in a loose beige sweater and tattered jeans from high school. She had no intention to look presentable or entice the advances her of 'husband' her mind couldn't even consider thinking this a reality. 

"He is 'Co' but up for partnership pretty soon." Instead of granting him a reply, Felicity breathed out a sigh before moving to open the door. As in everything else, Elias was nothing but a gentleman and opened it for her. Being rude was never her forte, even when upset, but from the back of her mind, there was an inner rebellion to act in such a way with him. She walked through without even a mutter of thanks.

Barging into the refined law office, she looked at the sleek marble walls of the waiting room, the glass desk that a young lady sat behind answering phone calls. Felicity's eyes wandered around the room, wondering who did such details for an office. She took notice of the strokes of gold flicker at the corners of the ceiling, creating a design to focus back on the chandelier in the center. 

"Ahh, Mrs. Montgomery, it's so nice to see you again. I'm so sorry to hear about your accident. Hopefully, everything is better now?" The receptionist looked at her, green eyes showing nothing beyond sympathy and a lingering of curiosity within them. Seeing no harm from the girl Felicity was ready to answer her, first wanting to correct her name. 

The smile that emerges on her nude lips quickly went away hearing the deep voice behind her. "Hello Miss Martinez, Mrs. Montgomery is recovering well for the most part. Unfortunately, we needed to come here to smooth out some details with Mr. Henderson, but nothing too bad." As he took charge of the conversation, Elias decided to take the liberty to wrap his hands around Felicity's shoulders. Her frown was placed on her lips once again as she stiffened to his touch.

The receptionist didn't take too much notice of the actions made by the couple in front of her. There were still vivid memories remembering the last time how crazy things had gotten. "Of course, I'll notify Mr.Henderson of your arrival." She picked up the phone, drawing her attention from the current conflict seen in the body language of the couple.

Shrugging off the heavy arm, Felicity crossed her arms over her chest and wandered off further into the waiting room, taking a deeper look into the details of the room. She looked at her reflection through a pleasant painting of a waterfall. The picture was meant to bring the viewer a sense of calm, but instead, a chill ran down her looking at those amber eyes staring straight at her barely a few feet away. Her eyes widened at the intensity of the stare, they weren't unkind. There was something beyond the usual pleasant nature she saw from him replaced that feeling. Her instincts told her to run, and she wasn't sure why.

She would've turned to him, but the sound of a door creaking caught her attention instead. "Elias, Felicity! Please come in, it's such a nice surprise to see you both again." It seemed to be the sentiment of the morning. Begrudgingly, the petite figure walked into the office first, ignoring Elias while bidding Henderson, their lawyer, a quiet "hello". 

Both men gave one another knowing looks; this conversation was not going to easy. 

In front of the long cherry wooden desk were two upholstered chairs. Felicity sat on the one closest to the window where she could look out to the willow tree and the brightening sunlight. Hearing the clatter of footsteps nearby, her body adjusted to the seat as she watched Elias' body envelope into the chair. His broad body made it look like a child's chair he was ready to break. Weary eyes turned towards the lawyer, he was wiry, sandy hair combed back in a neat manner matching his suit.

Seagreen eyes look towards her, void of any personable emotions. Felicity wasn't sure if he was a friend or foe, but he held some answers to her past.

"Felicity, I'm sorry to hear about your accident. I'm sure now is a trying time for you with your loss of memories from the last couple of years, but I hope we can answer some right now." Her eyes flitted from his eyes to threaded fingers. Despite calling her by her first name to show they had some form of a personal relationship, his body language did not reveal if he was on her or Elias' side. 

"I think it would be best to show her the marriage certificate and the contract." Incredulous eyes looked towards the tall man seated next to her, "Contract?" Instead of giving her a verbal reply Elias took her hand into his and gave it a light squeeze, trying to ease her mind from it. 

Papers were produced in front of her, the first being the contract. Snatching her hand away, she gingerly picked up the stapled set of sheets to read what was entailed. Both her full name and Elias' were printed. The form on the first page was titled on top, "Kiss at Midnight Clause: Marriage Contract" It took a lot in Felicity to not get angry and keep moving forward in reading.

_ Both parties involved have admitted to sharing a kiss before the stroke of midnight of New Years. By doing this, they must follow the tradition and marry within the year or suffer the consequences of the breaking wheel. _

Reading the last words over again, her trembling from before intensified. "Please, tell me this is a joke. How is it that- no why is it that something like this exists? You are just pulling some elaborate prank on me, right?" She scanned both pairs of eyes, deadpanned in her direction. 

"How could something so sick be allowed?"

Henderson cleared his throat. "Well, truth be told, this was created over two hundred years ago, when Portsmouth was founded by the colonist. When the Puritans used to live here, they created this tradition to ward off any premarital intimacies. They believed a new year represented the next chapter in life. If they kissed, it meant that their new chapter was with marriage. Soon, the clause was written in the town's lawbooks, and, for some reason, it was never taken out."

"Just because something is written in the lawbooks doesn't mean that people abide by it. What type of backward old-world crap is this? This law probably has not been used since that time." 

"On the contrary, it has been used several times. Many young lovers would use it to defy their parents and get together. The New Years' Kiss clause was used quite frequently until the early 80s. " She shook her head, not wanting to believe a word of it.

Feeling small and stuffy, she stood up, regaining some confidence. "So you're telling me because we apparently kissed New Year's Eve years ago we got married because of an old law which probably...which shouldn't be legal anymore?" Her rage was barely contained. If she thought her anger the night before was worse, then this was severe.

"Yes, you can say that." 

"Can't there be any amendment to it? I was never even a full-fledged resident here. I didn't even know about this! Is there any way to have it annulled?" Her attention and anger went straight to the lawyer sitting in front of her. Felicity hadn't glanced at Elias once, not seeing the sadness in his own eyes.

"That isn't how it works, Mrs. Montgomery."

"It's Patel. I'm Miss Patel." Henderson took a moment to sit upright, his shoulders squaring. Whatever sympathy he had for her seemed to have shed away. "No, Mrs. Montgomery, it is not something you can just have annulled. If you care to even read on in the contract, you cannot even separate without bearing the consequences. There's a reason why our town has the lowest divorce rates in all the states, hell in all the country! Although both your husband and I are understanding of your situation, there is no way to break this. Even if we were to cancel the contract, it would mean that both of you are breaking the law. It would be a pity to leave your son without any either parent alive." 

The last part was cruel. The snide smirk he gave showed it was said intentionally. Finally, Felicity looked towards her said husband, whose gaze couldn't meet her. He hadn't said anything, allowing his lawyer to speak for him. She was being pushed into a corner, forced to either go back into this marriage of potentially face having her bones break before dying a painful death.

The anger she had shaken physically from her hands, but there was nothing she could grab onto to let out the rage. Coldness struck her instantly. She felt a looming over her, loneliness becoming her second skin. It seemed that the past five months for her was nothing but disappointment, one after another.

Her body shakes, tears overflowing as she puts a shaky hand over her face to hide. Felicity just couldn't take it any longer. This situation was all too much for her to take on. And worse, she was meant to believe all of it. She was told to believe that she's 23, married, and already a mother. She had to believe that four years of her life was gone, to never be remembered again, and she needed to pick up wherever it left off. 

Felicity was never known to be a weak girl. Whatever would come at her way, she was quick to shrug it off or find a solution. When Parker broke up with her, she didn't cry about it but pushed herself further into her studies. When her family moved to a different country at a young age and was forced to live in a basement, she didn't whine about the displeasure. She did her best to adjust and strive to make the best of it, that mentality was all she knew to do. When things got tough, she would take it on her shoulders and march forward, but this was her breaking point. 

She couldn't hold it in any longer. 

Amid her dilemma, cracks were allowing the acceptance of warmth, a solid frame held onto her shaking form. Hands soothed her by running fingers through her hair, shushing her as a mother does to her crying babe. 

In her right mind, she wouldn't have accepted the gesture from him, but there was no one else for her to turn towards. She wasn't just going to hug the lawyer who didn't seem to care too much for her.

Felicity started to accept Elias again, even if she didn't want to admit it in the current moment. After a few more long minutes, her trembles ceased, tears dried up. She was offered a tissue that she took without meeting the gaze of the lawyer. 

"Thanks, Frasier. I think for now I'll take her home. I'll speak to you later." She didn't cower away from Elias' touch like before, instead of allowing him to hold her smaller hand as her head hung low. Brown eyes looked down at her sneakers that weren't tied evenly, shifting then to his shoes that looked as if they came straight out of an advertisement. Felicity hid her face as they left the office, blindly following him to his lavish car, similar to that night from months before. 

Opening the door for her, Elias watched as she chewed her lip nervously. In all his years of being with her, she never looked so distraught. Remembering the first time going down this rodeo, she was furious. Felicity fought harder last time. The results were the same. No matter what she wanted the outcome to be, it would never be anything other than being with him. He eyed the exposed shoulder from her oversized sweater. He noted that she was never one to dress in a sloppy manner.

After going to the driver's seat, he fixed the collar of her sweater to not show her skin. Bruises were still apparent, and the last thing she needed was any more pity from the people of their town. 

The drive was silent for the most part. Felicity quickly recovered from her episode in the lawyer's office. She rolled her jaw several times as she watched Elias drive down a vaguely familiar route, but to where she could not remember. 

"The kiss New Year's Eve, were you trying to recreate that night?" 

For the first time in months, she heard his small laugh, "Guilty as charged. I did hope that you would somehow remember what we were if there was another kiss shared in the same way. Creating a replica of the memory to trigger it back to your conscious." 

She played with her fingers before looking up at him, wonder came to her seeing his calm features looking straight ahead, a small smile on his face thinking of what he did. From the looks of it, he didn't seem like he was lying. 

"So how did we end up kissing all those years ago? I'm not one to do things on a whim, but you probably already know that."

"No, you usually don't do things spontaneously, but that night was for both of us." He stopped the car. Felicity looked in front to see a renovated blue Victorian style home. This was their home, the place she lived for the last couple of years. 

With curious eyes, she looked at his relaxed posture, hands falling to his lap as he looked down, reminiscent of the past.

"We first met at my parent's Christmas Party. You know, the one they would usually have at the country club. I was home again after my second tour, and you just arrived to start your winter break. You were speaking to Mrs.Fields, the resident gossip about what happened in town for the last few months. I remember this because of your reaction towards her horrendous way of bragging about her sister's two yachts and three rolls Royce. You seemed polite in gestures, but the look of wariness in your eyes towards her showed otherwise. When she asked if you heard about her husband's retirement from the board of the company he worked for, you answered rather softly, 'Bless his soul. Now he's forced to stay home.' I was only a few feet away, but somehow you both heard my laughter over the music playing. While she gave me the side-eye, you looked at me with that curious smile you would form when intrigued. Despite this, she introduced us to one another, although brief, we both shook hands and our eyes met. That's when I knew, seeing the playful look in your eyes." His grin only grew as he remembered that night, meeting Felicity for the second time.

"You managed to get away from her after some time and like me hovering around some paintings. We bumped into one another and got into a conversation, hitting it off from there. We didn't see each other again until New Year's Eve. Some guy was bothering you down by the corner on Elmer and Sutter when I stopped him. We both decided to head to the lake, and the kiss just happened. Nothing was planned. It, the marriage, was mutual for the most part. We were so happy together." The longing look in his eyes became glazed over with tears. A pitiful tug pulled in Felicity's heart seeing him this way.

While it did seem authentic to an extent, being that she would have such an interaction with Mrs.Fields and the mannerisms he described, other details didn't make any sense. For one, she was getting over her breakup with Parker, with who she was in a long-term relationship with from a young age. There was no way that she would've fallen for someone after the first meeting. It sounded nothing like her.

Remembering her thoughts from when they did kiss months ago, there was also wariness in believing she would make the rash decision to marry someone on the limb. The problem was Elias made it sound too perfect.

But the look in his eyes, the nostalgia of remembering the past, she couldn't tell whether it was all an act or he was feeling this way.

"It seems that you always have a knack for saving my life." He laughed at her statement, albeit dumb, "I suppose you are right. There's nothing wrong with being saved, though."

A painful smile emerged on her lips, knowing she had no choice but to make the best of this situation. "Shall we head inside then? I think you'll have to give me a house tour." He was rightfully shocked at her changed demeanor, becoming used to her brash actions towards him. Maybe the dilemma at hand was not meant to tear them apart, but have a second chance of renewing their relationship.

Elias was happy to see her home again, right where she belonged, "Of course, dear. Welcome home." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We officially reached the halfway point of the story, prepare for the intensity of the relationship to quicken. 
> 
> So Felicity finally begins to get some answers, though none seem good to her. One point to make moving forward is the contradiction between what is being told to Felicity and the actions of those around her. Do leave your thoughts on whether you think Elias is being honest with our girl or not and what you think will happen next.
> 
> Till next time <3


	7. VII

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity gets reacquainted with her old home, and a conversation with her cousin may reveal more than meets the eye.

Getting out of the car, Felicity took a moment to stretch her body out. It was the first time in months she was capable of doing this without feeling pain in her knee. The weather was pleasant, the sun shining bright, and the wind was blowing light enough to bring a fresh breeze. Hands now on her hips, she took a good look at the house in front of her, a massive two-story home that was twice the size of the current home her parents had. It was pretty in design, with not one but two front porches, one on each floor. The columns at the top of the stairs span what she could best estimate ten feet high. She wondered how big the inside must be.

Turning back, she hadn't noticed before just how far away they were from the town. Looking at Elias' figure coming out of the car, she decided to ask him about it. "How far are we from everyone else?"

"Hmm?" He looked at her then back to the green land behind them, "About 30 miles out. I planned on buying this home before we ever got married. Privacy is important to me." Giving him a slow nod, that uneasy feeling from before came back. Even alone in New York, there were always people around her. Here, it was just the two of them, and Zachariah as well. Speaking of the baby, "Where is he, Zachy?" Was she a terrible mother for not remembering her child? Some may say so, but they probably didn't lose the memory of their child even existing.

"He's with your cousin. I thought it would be best to not bring Zachariah along. Besides, now we can catch up a little." 

Before having a chance to register his words, Elias was quick to pull Felicity into his embrace, lifting her into both of his arms.

"Put me down!" She kept hitting his shoulders, but he laughed at her weak attempts of stopping him.

"Never! I want to hold you in my arms and keep you there. It was hard enough to not be with you for months on end. I never want to even think of you gone again." Elias climbed the large steps with Felicity's protest going to deaf ears.

She watched his determined face, his hold around her tightened as he said those words. If she had shared a mutual attraction, there was no doubt that her heart would've sprung at his declaration, but unfortunately, it wasn't the case. Her words fell silent as they reached the top, finally feeling her feet touch the floor as he fishes for his keys.

Out of instinct, she moved away from him, her arms folded over each other, protecting her from any further ambush from him. His knowing smile never left. Instead, he pushed out his hand for her to take as they entered the house.

She stood there for a long moment before wrapping her fingers around his, telling herself she had to be willing to try and move forward. She took a step inside and saw how big it was. The front alone was spacious. Her eyes marveled at the Rococo designs curving on the walls, feeling like she stepped into a Baroque themed home. The heavy chandler crystallized with the sun radiating its light, the prism seen on the light blue walls. Her eyes went to the curving stairwell leading to the second floor. Grandeur was not sufficient enough to describe how everything looked.

It was so different from the outside of the house. She never thought that both themes would work together.

"Whoever made this house did a marvelous job."

"I know, and she's standing right in front of me." Felicity turned her head so fast she nearly gave herself whiplash, "Excuse me?"

"You did this." The warmth of his hand moved to gesture to the house, "Both inside and outside."

A laugh of disbelief breathed out, "Sure, I was capable of designing this."

"It's true, not long after we got married, you decided to make this house your canvas. I was more than happy to oblige so you could have time to work on your craft."

She walked straight down into the living room, this time seeing Georgian styled elements encompassing the large space. Quickly she kept going in and out of different rooms, seeing different themes ranging from the French countryside to good old American rustic.

"I wanted to do architecture, not interior design." She said it out loud to herself but wasn't surprised to hear Elias's deep voice give her a response, " While you did stick with architecture, you had flares of interior design also. Like with everything else, your golden touch created this."

"So what you're saying is that I did graduate from college?" Felicity looked at him in bewilderment as he laughed hard. Her question seemed to be funny to him.

"Of course you did, what a silly question." He took this as a chance to walk closer to her again, cupping her right cheek in his palm, "If I wanted a wife who only played house all day and dwindled my bank account, I would've settled down a very long time ago. I saw your ambition and dreams, and it made me fall deeper in love with you. Your determination makes me feel determined to do better in my life, and it has."

She moved her hand over his, pulling his hand from her face. Felicity was elated that this marriage never stopped her from the original plan, but she felt that warm feeling in the pit of her again. The urge to touch his lips with hers was strong, wanting to show her appreciation to him with that small reward.

At least he wasn't a brute who kept his wife barefoot and pregnant to wash and cook for him.

Walking back to the living room, she took notice of a painting hanging over the fireplace. It seemed vaguely familiar, a woman looking down in distraught, in her hand a bitten fruit. What ever-fleeting emotions she held before, Felicity abandoned them to embrace the heaviness of the painting before her. The feeling emitted from the woman was something Felicity knew all too well, confusion.

She didn't have a chance to process the feeling for long. Elias was right behind her calling her back to the present. As with everything in the last couple of hours, his hands were quick to make contact with her, resting on her shoulders lightly. "Although I would love nothing more than to relish this time alone together, it would be best to bring back Zachariah so we can finally spend time as a family. Don't you agree,  _ ma pêche _ ?"

Felicity furrowed her eyebrows at the nickname he sprung on her. He was moving way too fast. She took a step forward and turned to him, amber eyes were eager, stance relaxed as he let his hands fall back to his side. Giving herself some more space, a nervous laugh voiced out as her gaze was on the plush carpet.

"I'm sorry, the last day has been a whirlwind for me. I need some time to get used to how things once were. You understand that, right?" Her eyes looked back up to his amber ones, watching the joy in them slowly died.

"Of course," it was his turn to give painful smiles, "You need time. I'm sorry for rushing into things. I simply want my wife back. I'm sure it will happen soon. Patience is everything." She returned his smile with a sad one, not noticing how his hands curled up, nails biting into the skin.

Silence fell. Whatever strides were made in the last hours quickly backtracked into awkwardness. 

"I guess we should get going. I can't wait to have Zachy in my arms again." She walked back the trail to exit the house. He stood there a moment longer. 

"It's Zachariah, not Zachy." Elias made sure to mutter it, but his lips turned up. They would always argue about the nickname she would give their son. He thought it didn't suit a Montgomery man. Felicity thought it was cute, but 'cute' was a way to describe a girl, not a boy. Even if the nickname still bothered him, it was a step in the right direction. 

Following suit, he walked out back to the silver Audi, watching the figure of his  _ pêche _ stand in the driveway looking out to the acres of land separating their residence from the rest of Portsmouth. He unlocked the doors, and she rushed into the seat. She hadn't met his gaze again, but he suspected it was because she had gotten shy from everything that had happened.

As they reached Anchal's apartment, Felicity was quick to stop Elias from getting off his seat. "I think it would be best to see my cousin alone first. You don't mind, right?"

"No, no. You can do that." He shook his head before forcing a smile on his face. It was hard to see her not want to be with him, but he knew that he needed to give her that space. For everything to get back to how it used to be, he needed to remind himself it would take time. She needed to trust him again, and it was clear she didn't.

Tapping on the steering wheel, he watched as she walked up the stairs, careful not to strain her leg by moving too fast. 

~~~

Instead of taking the elevator for quick arrival, Felicity was determined to use the stairs to work her muscles back into place. Hearing the buzz of the intercom, she walked a good five flights of stairs, taking small breaks in between when she felt a strong pull on her knee.

She saw the apartment number in the front, the pink door with a tiara made out of decorative nails. 

Anchal always had an exaggerated taste in expressing herself, not caring about the stares she would receive in her style. If she were to buy her own house one day. Felicity only prayed that she wasn't the architect involved to fix it up.

She knocked on the door, which opened immediately with her cousin holding Zachy. "Hey! It's good to see you walking again. Come inside." Anchal looked into the hallway a little, "Is Elias not with you?"

Felicity tilted her head, "He's outside waiting. Does he usually come with me?" She took a step inside the brightly lit apartment. On the television, some show about dogs in costumes played. Her cousin put Zachy back into his chair before leading Felicity back into the kitchen island.

"I guess that's a way to put it. You two were inseparable."

Felicity took in a breath, "So I guess you already heard the news. Why didn't you tell me before that I lost my memory?"

Pulling out a pitcher from the fridge, Anchal had a frown on her face contemplating her answer. "It wasn't that I wanted to tell you Filly, but Elias begged me to keep quiet. He begged everyone to just pretend it was four years ago so you would feel comfortable."

She wanted to be angry, so badly, but taking it out on her cousin wasn't the solution. She needed answers. "Okay, but why about now? I don't think that springing the news to me during dinner was the best choice."

"That was your dad's fault, and although inappropriate, I don't blame him. Elias has been nothing but kind and loving towards you, and your response is to treat him distantly." Her mouth twisted hearing the words of her cousin.

"I was like that because he kept trying to go out with me even when I said no. I wasn't inherently rude to him until last night, and now I do feel ashamed seeing how he's been nothing but nice."

An arm went around her shoulder, giving it a light squeeze, but it didn't bother her. "I know. This situation is a lot to take in."

"Did you know about the contract?" Anchal took a moment to figure out what Felicity was talking about but nodded nonetheless. "I think all the immediate family members did. It was a shock when you came with him one day and said you were going to get married." 

She didn't know a contract existed, giving a bull answer to cover up suspicion. 

"So, I wanted all of this?"

.

.

.

"Yes, ever since you've been with Elias, there's been nothing but bliss." While her words said paradise, actions of prolonged answers and hesitance in her eyes said otherwise.

"What aren't you telling me?" Accusatory eyes then turned on Felicity, "I don't know what you mean. As far as I and everyone else in this town know, you and Elias belong on the front cover of a 'How to Have a Perfect Marriage' book. You guys are meant to be together. You've said so yourself so many times." 

Taken aback, Felicity's instincts told her it was all a farce. There was no such thing as a perfect marriage. Nothing was ever perfect.

"Look, I'm sorry for all the questions. I need to wrap my head around all of this. Since we went to the lawyer's office earlier, he has managed to find at least three different ways to declare his love for me. And he's been a little too touchy. And the nickname!" 

"What? You mean  _ ma _ _ pêche _ ?"

"Yes! I hate it." Anchal gave a short laugh, "That's not what the old you would say."

"I don't think that was the old me Anchal." She turned away from her cousin and went to her child immersed with dogs on the screen. "This person being described isn't me." Picking up the chair, she looked down at her son, cooing gently.

"Be honest with me, what was my marriage to him like? Better yet, how did I get into the car accident? No one has even answered that for me yet!" Felicity noticed how her cousin, albeit quick, glanced at her front door.

"As I said before Filly, your marriage to him was great. Both you guys were happy, and you will be happy again _. Trust me _ . For your accident, all I know is your car couldn't stop in time. A car was coming in too fast, and your breaks didn't work. Just like the one before."

"Before?"

"Yea, you know all those years ago after our trip to Miami? You got into a car accident on the way back. Thankfully you weren't as hurt as this time."

She could remember that time when she texted her cousin right before getting hit. "How many years apart were the accidents?"

Anchal pondered for a moment, "About four years. I know Elias probably didn't get to tell you yet, but I told him because both accidents were traumatic for you, the time in between was lost. It's not unusual for people who end up in more than one accident, but it is pretty rare for people to get into accidents often." That last part wasn't meant to come out biting, but it stung Felicity nonetheless.

"So you're saying that the reason I could've lost four years' worth of memories is because of the trauma from both accidents, that my psyche couldn't handle it?"

"For now, yes. It doesn't mean that your memory wouldn't come back, but it may take time if anything emerges. That or if something triggers your memory."

Like that kiss months ago, he said he wanted to trigger her memory.

"Well, thanks, Anchal, for watching Zachy here. And I'm sorry for my questions and confusion. I think these next couple of months will be hard for me."

Her cousin smiled at her, "It's no problem. Just remember I'm always here for you."

Even as the words were said, something in Felicity questioned the authenticity of the sentiment. 

Holding onto the handle of her son's chair, she opened the door with her free hand, surprised to see who was on the other side.

"Elias? I thought I told you to wait in the car..." He was leaning next to the door waiting for her to come out. His eyes went from behind her, Anchal, to then meet Felicity's face with a smile. 

"I know, but I was worried you would have a hard time bringing this down."

"There's an elevator."

"Still, you're pretty stubborn. I wouldn't be surprised if you did try to walk down like this." He grabbed the handle from her, "Thanks again, it was nice to see you. Anchal. Maybe next time all three of us can catch up."

Felicity turned to her cousin to catch any odd expressions, but her cousin kept up the act and waved towards Elias, "Of course! You know, I love seeing my nephew."

Wordlessly, Felicity walked out of the apartment and walked towards the elevator. She thought Elias would follow her, but he didn't. Maybe he took the stairs to give her some space.

As she waited a few minutes in front of the car, some things in her mind weren't adding up. Her cousin, for example, wore her heart off her sleeve. Her actions gave away that there were many things she intentionally hid and lied about to Felicity. Her answers sounded like a rehearsed script with the specific words being reused several times. And the way she looked at the door? Anchal knew that Elias was waiting outside, but how? And why would he always be with Felicity? Didn't she have any space for herself?

Thoughts were thrown to the back of her mind though seeing his tall body limber down the front stairs of the apartment building.

"Let's get moving. I think we should buy some dinner tonight. How does Italian sound?"

Opening her side of the car, she answered in a light voice, "Perfect, it sounds just perfect."

As he drove off into the street, her body faced away from him, looking out at the busy street in a longing manner. As they reached the stoplight, he caught her attention when grabbing her idle hand, a smile on his face.

This was going to be a tough few months.


	8. VIII

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's a new side to Elias, and Felicity learns what happens when she doesn't listen to him about how her 'new' life is.

After the long first day going back to her old life, Felicity felt content with the positive note it ended on. After eating dinner in the dining room, which like all the other rooms, was impeccable and large. Elias thought it best to show her the marriage certificate she didn't see in the lawyer's office. 

It was real; even with the contract before, the marriage didn't feel so real until this piece of paper made its appearance. Felicity found it funny how words on a sheet of paper can make everything official.

Her name was printed: Felicity Patel, along with her birthday and occupation. At the time of their marriage, which was May 23, she was still a full-time student. Scanning the paper, she finally was able to have the long-awaited question answered.

Elias was twelve years older than her. It meant that he was thirty-three when they were married, both in completely different stages of life. His goal was to settle down, while she wanted to explore and find herself. For some reason, Felicity felt robbed of her freedom. Even if she did willingly enter this marriage, the independence she sought out was taken away from her.

She knew he was looking at her, trying to gauge her reaction to the reality of their situation. Not knowing how to respond, she gave him back the paper and asked where she would sleep. Felicity needed to rest and process all the new information given to her in the past 24 hours.

There was an inkling of fear that he would insist on her sleeping with him. From his escalating actions throughout the day, she wouldn't be surprised if he planned on doing that, he wanted things to move quickly, but she couldn't handle that. She was never the type to move fast into relationships, and even if married under these circumstances, she needed things to move at a snail's pace.

Thankfully, he allowed her to sleep in the guest room, void of anything meant to prove their marriage was real. He leads her to the master bedroom holding all her clothes and personal belongings she had since begin married. The closet was big enough, all sides filled with clothes; the left side filled with business attire and the right with casual outfits. About three-quarters of the clothes were dresses, nearly the same length but in different styles. Though she never opposed to wearing dresses, jeans were her go-to in casual wear. There were barely five pairs in sight, and all were folded neatly on the top shelf.

On the wall was a vanity, an oval mirror with several lights surrounding it. The drawers attached held Felicity's home clothes, and that didn't give her much comfort. There were many dresses, lingerie sets, and short PJs. Everything was sheer and small; there wasn't anything modest. The way a person dresses can say a lot about them. By the looks of her closet, Felicity did not doubt that her past self lived a double life.

She took a cami and a pair of shorts along with some underwear. After digging further into the bottom drawer, she found a cardigan to cover herself. Felicity walked out of the closet to meet a bare chest, "Sorry." She dashed outside before he got an edge-word in, making a beeline to the guest bathroom. 

Old clothes fell to the floor as the room became warm from the hot stream of water. Wanting nothing more than to relax, Felicity bent her head under the water, letting out a sigh feeling the hot droplets on her body.

Passing a hand through her body, she felt her stomach that wasn't as firm as before. At first, she thought it was due to her lack of exercise after her accident, but now knowing why she wrapped her hands around her abdomen. Maybe because she gave birth over a year ago, she didn't feel any critical changes in her body, but not remembering that moment of her first time hurt her. All her firsts happened in those four years and now were absent. They weren't going to come back.

Amid her thoughts, she heard a small creak, nothing significant, but it alarmed her enough to give a loud gasp. She moved further into the corner of the shower, quick to think that someone was watching her. She opened the shower door slightly to look outside, but there wasn't anyone there.

Felicity wasn't going to take any chances. Quickly she washed off and donned on the fresh clothes. She looked at the door. It was slightly ajar, confirming her suspicions.

She walked back to the master bedroom, knocking on the door before taking a step inside.

"Is everything alright?" Elias was sitting on his bed, book in hand, and still shirtless. She mustered up a small smile, "Everything is fine. I just got a bit flustered, seeing the door of the bathroom open a bit as I was inside. I just wanted to say thank you again for understanding my need for space right now. Have a goodnight." He smiled at her thanks, ignoring her comment about the bathroom door.

"Sleep well, ma pêche." Felicity cringed as she closed the door, not liking the sound of his pet name for her. The name itself wasn't bad. It was the endearment held behind it from him.

Walking back into the guest bedroom, she made sure this time to lock the door. It made no sense to think any further into what happened. Sleep was calling her, and she was more than happy to submit. 

As she left the room, Elias felt a flush of embarrassment, knowing she caught him in his lewd act. It wasn't something he was proud of, but it wasn't often that he was caught in the act. It had just been so long since Elias saw his wife. All he wanted was a glimpse.

Elias could already tell what she was thinking towards that thought. To have someone look at her in such a manner made her self-conscious. Before, his problem was not so terrible. Sometimes as a young teen, he would sneak and look at the girls in school changing for gym, bringing him a thrill to get away with just looking and see their vulnerability.

If anything, Felicity was only vulnerable, not having the upper hand in this situation. She had no choice but to rely on him to get her answers. Elias was most thankful for the power he obtained with the accident. Her inquisitive nature would lead her to listen to him, but he had to keep a close eye. She would go to others for answers if he was not careful, and he knew his actions today brought on many.

Elias's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Einaudi's Nuvole Bianche coming from his phone. He picked it up without a second thought, "Ahh, Frasier, good to hear your voice again."

His friend and lawyer answered back to the crisp line, "How is she now? Did she calm down or still having a fit?"

Elias rose from his bed, slowly pacing back and forth. His jaw ticked involuntarily, "No, she's better now. I think it'll be at least a week before things get back to normal. For now, she wants her space, and I have to give it to her."

"Alright, sounds good. Did Filly buy the story?" A frown etched on his thick lips, hearing the nickname for his wife. Elias did not appreciate the fond endearment his friend used. It was not appropriate. 

Amber eyes looked towards the wedding picture on his nightstand. He was smiling while his wife looked somber. She tried to smile for that picture, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"Yes, she bought it, for now. You know how many questions she has to ask before letting anything go through. I need to make the story tight lid so she wouldn't question too much. This afternoon she went to her cousin for answers." 

The voice on the phone released a sigh, "Did she say anything?"

"She knows better than to, or that case of malpractice will make its way back to her. You still have it?" 

"Of course, that and the other contract. Look. Just don't go too hard on Felicity. You are my friend Elias, but this girl has been through more than enough, especially with you on her side now, no offense."

A mirthless laugh escapes, "I'll try, but don't be concerned. Felicity is still  _ my _ wife before your friend. Apologies for making you the bad guy, but the closer she gets to trust me again, the easier this transition will be."

"...It's whatever, but I sometimes wish that you never dug up that law. If you had just taken things slowly, none of this would be happening. I know you'll be upset hearing this, but it needs to be said, Felicity is only suffering because of your actions, no matter what good intentions you may have hidden behind them. Maybe if you tell her the truth early on, she would be willing to move forward. I don't think you want the events before the accident to happen again." 

As his friend was talking, Elias was drinking a bit of whiskey he kept in the room. Although Frasier was right, his words weren't appreciated and only made Elias angry. Keeping up appearances, though, like he knew best, he didn't allow his anger to voice out. "Of course, you do have a point. I think, for now, I will take things slow. As for the truth, though, we may need a bit more time on it. I don't need her to hate me because of a misunderstanding." His words and tone were rational, but his hand was straining around the glass in his hand, breaking it from his restrained anger.

"Look, I have to go, got two surgeries in the morning. Have a good night." He hung up before his friend reciprocated pleasantries. Walking to the master bathroom, he went straight to the first aid kit and stood in front of the mirror. Using the tweezers from Felicity's makeup bag, he began to carefully remove the small pieces of glass embedded into his hand.

It was painful, but he refused to let it get to him. He craved pain in some form or another, either taking it or giving it. For now, he had to endure the pain, looking at himself in the mirror. His amber eyes held nothing except contempt against himself. His lips a straight line as he pulled out the third piece of glass. They weren't deep, thankfully, so he could disinfect it and wrap the bandage tight without worrying about delaying the surgeries tomorrow.

He should probably also shave, seeing the shadow of hair on his upper lip and around his chin. Cleaning out the rest of his left hand, he packed the first aid back into place before swiping his free hand into his hair, smiling to the mirror. He never did look handsome smiling but tried nonetheless. He didn't want people to think he was some sort of freak. 

When he finally went to bed, he eyed the injured hand, thinking how small cuts could cause so much pain. He refused to take any painkillers, believing that he needed to feel something for all his wife had gone through. It was nothing compared to her life the past months, but at least it was something to make him feel for her, something other than anger and love. 

Closing his eyes, he had dreams about Felicity being happy again, smiling at him genuinely rather than the forced ones he had gotten used to seeing. They would be together again, as it was intended, watching their son play on the front lawn. At least in his dreams, Elias got what he wanted, even if reality may never give him his desires. 

Waking up at the crack of dawn, as he conditioned himself to do overtime, he felt his arms encircle the pillow Felicity would rest her head on. He sighed, seeing the space. Not to worry, he told himself, she would come here willingly when she's ready. His mother always told him patience was a virtue, and now was the time for him to practice it. 

After taking a shower and dressing for work, he walked down the hall to see the guest room open and heard the noise of clattering downstairs.

Not wanting to startle her, he took slow, quiet steps to see her searching for what he presumed were cups. All the cabinets were at least half a foot taller than her, so she was forced to get a chair to reach up. Unwittingly, she placed the chair on the creasing of a tile, making it wobble.

"Easy there." The last thing Elias wanted was her to fall and re-injure her knee again, so he was quick to grab onto her waist to steady her.

She didn't jump or yell at his sudden arrival, but she did stiffen, feeling his warm hands touching her skin. The cami she wore rode up as her hand-stretched for a cup. Why was everything so damn high? Her body felt at ease now having some balance, so she grabbed a tall latte mug before getting down, his hands not leaving until her feet touched the floor.

"Careful, there were mugs in the dishwasher if you need them next time." Her face flushed, wondering why she didn't think of that before. 

"Are you looking to make some tea?" She shook her head, "No, I need some strong coffee."

He let out a tsk, "You know, coffee isn't that good for you."

"It won't stunt my growth if that's why you're worried about it. I've always been like this." He didn't smile at her half-hearted joke. "It's not that, after some time, you couldn't stomach coffee. You found out that you were hypersensitive to it, so I don't think it would be wise to drink any now."

Elias took long strides to the other side of the kitchen cabinets, grabbing a box of tea, "This is what you would usually drink. It doesn't have a lot of caffeine, but it's herbal, so you still have that energy boost."

Felicity found it fishy. Even though there was no need to drink coffee for the past few months at home, when she did drink some, it didn't cause her any harm. "I think I'll take my chances."

She went forward in making her coffee, ignoring his stare at her blatant disobedience to him. Her eyes watched his as she took a long sip, wanting to prove him wrong. 

And she did, for about thirty seconds. 

She watched as his eyes lit up in amusement, her stomach quick to react badly to the drink. The mug rested on the counter behind her as she was quick to wrap her hand around her midsection, feeling nauseous. Why was her body reacting so quickly to it? It was vile, the feeling she had. Was there something in this coffee? She felt sick instantly, this was a punishment of some sort.

Elias was quick to sit her down by the table nearby, moving about before giving her a cup of water. She drank some, hoping the cool liquid would ease the queasiness in her stomach.

Dumping the coffee, he began to reheat the kettle to make her tea. "You feeling better now?" Felicity nodded, not wanting to give a verbal response. He knew that would happen, and he allowed her to go on with her actions, but he did warn her. Like a child, she wanted to show off, and just like one, she was proven wrong.

As she nursed the cup of water, she looked at his attire. A crisp navy blue dress shirt, and dark slacks, a patterned tie perfectly placed on his neck. His lips held a mild smile as he watched her, elbow on the table as his right index finger rested on top of his lips. His slightly wavy black hair was all in place, probably not even needing any products with how soft it looked. Everything about him looked perfect, other than his face.

Felicity felt self-conscious around him. She was never a perfect person. Organized, yes, but she never sought to have the perfect clothes or flawless makeup. She had a feeling that with Elias, she was meant to hold the role of the perfect woman, and it was just something she couldn't be. Now, for example, she was more than sure she looked an absolute mess. Dark eye bags from stress. Chapped lips, and her hair up in a messy ponytail. Even her clothes were mashed up from the fitful rest she had.

The way he looked at her, though, there wasn't any disgust or displeasure from her appearance. 

On the contrary, he had a look of content in his eyes. Felicity looked beautiful, even when a mess. Compared to how he usually saw her, always ready to take on anything, it was a breath of fresh air to see her at her worse. It may be harsh to refer to this as her worse, but in his mind, she was always perfect in appearance.

The kettle boiled, and he made two cups of the herbal tea. His actions were methodical taking his time for everything to be equal. 

Russet eyes noticed the bandage on his left hand, "Is your hand alright?"

He looked to her, bringing the two cups to the table. Elias rested her cup in front of her, bandaged hand lightly touching her fingers. "I'm fine. I broke a glass last night, and some pieces cut me."

"Did you get everything out, clean it well?"

His smile widened, "Yes, I think I know how to clean a wound well enough." Felicity's face felt flushed, realizing what he meant, returning his smile with an embarrassed one, "Right." 

"Don't worry about me, though. You need to get back on your feet. The firm is expecting you to return next week."

Eyebrows furrowed together on her face, "What firm?"

"You work for an architect firm, one of the best in the Northeast. You managed to secure an internship in your third year in college, and now you work there. It was kind of them to allow you this long of a break, but like all things, you need to get back into the game. Take this week to get back into the routine. You should have some old plans in your office to jog your memory. I believe in you, so just try your best."

For the first time in the past two days, she felt joy, knowing that she was able to get into the firm. She daydreamed about it since she was seventeen. She needed to step on it right away, not wanting to disappoint her bosses, she hoped to remember everyone there! No, she told herself, let's not think too far ahead.

Felicity needed to go and study her blueprints, just like Elias said, and focus on showing them that an accident won't stop her from doing the job right. Everything will come back to her. 

She just had to believe that. 

After drinking the tea, Felicity did feel her stomach settle down, almost consciously sedated. He eyed her, "Are you feeling better?" She gave a hazy smile, "Yes, thanks."

His hand went to her hair, wiping the loose tendrils away from her face, "You only have to trust me. I know everything seems so different, but if you do as I say, things will come back to you in no time. Don't you agree?"

Felicity found his words odd, taking it as Elias telling her to obey his commands and no harm would come to her. She nodded, not wanting to think too deeply about what he meant. He was right about the coffee. Maybe she did change more than she realized.

And who would know her better than her husband?


	9. IX

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity ventures around the house and a simple gesture gives her a rude awakening

The first week of being back home, as she started to see it as, went by quicker than anticipated. Felicity had to adapt to a new way of life, from how her day panned out to the diet she ate.

She had to rely on Elias to tell her everything, from the moment they woke up to the bed routine. Every moment of their day was scheduled, and it drove her mad. The days started at five in the morning. They would get ready for work before having breakfast that consisted of tea and omelets. Zachariah would wake up around seven, and she would usually get him dressed and fed. For the first few days, Elias showed and reminded her of all the things that their son needed.

Though Felicity did stay home for that week, Elias told her to explore and bond with Zachariah. The second day getting the groove of things, she wore a burgundy short-sleeved knit ribbed shirt and a creme floral midi skirt that held a light bounce. Walking bare feet wasn't a problem to her, but, to Elias, it was important. "You should wear shoes. At least that's what you used to do." 

  
She realized it was his safety net for everything, "That's what you used to do." Felicity thought that he was mostly saying that just so she would not question his word. While doubtful that she did everything as he said, she was willing to try her best to comply with Elias.

  
Walking into the kitchen, she decided to take in the details, all the little knickknacks that went over her head the first morning home. There weren't many items around to bring any liveliness into the room. It was only the mosaic backsplash along the lower half of the wall that brought color to the stale atmosphere. The refrigerator didn't even have any magnets to show character, just sleek metal showing a skewed reflection of herself.

  
Felicity looked at the other side of the fridge. She wasn't expecting to see a board with a time table filled out. Her eyes scanned the schedule written out. The last date on it was six months ago, October 27. The day was listed just as Elias told her for the most part, and it seemed towards the evening, it would vary. She wasn't surprised seeing that he was the head of his department. What sent a chill down her was the list of 'chores' she had in a smaller list on the bottom right corner. There were so many details. If some stranger were to see the chart, they would think it was a business itinerary. 

As a child, she was never one to follow a schedule unless it was for school. Outside, she was quick to rip up any sort of lists her parents wrote out for her to follow, whether it was for chores or a list of extra studies for her to do. It wasn't until Felicity was a teenager, she started to become disciplined, but it wasn't of her own doing. Given a rare opportunity by a professional tennis player, she trained overtime to have a routine if she ever wanted to win teen championships. If it wasn't for her coach, many opportunities she received would never have bared fruit if it wasn't for the discipline he taught her. 

  
This list, though, didn't seem to benefit her in the same way. Everything she saw so far in this home, her lifestyle and routine, all reflected around Elias. Felicity knew herself, and despite all the glamour and sophistication surrounding her, it wasn't something she aspired to have. What she wanted the most out of life, her autonomy, completely vanished, and her new goal was to please her husband. It left a bitter taste in her mouth. No matter how he spoke of her working and the ambitions reached, Felicity started to think that it was all a coverup for whatever the true nature of their relationship was. 

  
Going to the sink, she wet a piece of paper towel, erasing the words on the board, making it glossy white again. A small satisfied smile came on her face, she didn't want to live by a rulebook, and it needed to start now. 

  
Hearing the cry of Zachariah, she walked to his room, picking him up from the crib. Holding him on her right shoulder, Felicity shushed her child until his crying ceased. Rocking him back and forth, Felicity took the opportunity to look around his room. It was full of baby items, all blue and organized. There was a playpen with toys in the corner, but even that looked staged.

On the diaper counter, there were several framed photos of her and Elias. She took a closer look at the biggest one, her wedding picture.  
She was wearing a white off the shoulder lace dress, holding a bouquet of lilacs in her hand. Her hair was in a loose intricate updo, and she had on nude lipstick. Elias was in a suit, looking smart like always. His smile was wide, looking happy as any groom should. He was holding her in his arms, like a man holding onto his trophy. To the regular Joe looking at this picture, seeing her placid smile would give off the idea that she was shy.

But the look in her eye, it was melancholy. There wasn't a bit of happiness in her from the photo. She knew her face, and no matter what was told to her by others, whatever transpired before the wedding didn't make her happy one bit. The only suspicion it resolved, though, was the basis of the marriage. Felicity knew that she didn't willingly enter it all those years ago. That was evident now.

Looking at Zachariah, she gave a wistful sigh, combing a finger through his soft locks. Despite all that happened to her, there was a part of Felicity glad that she at least had her child to help her forget for a moment. 

  
The majority of her days the first week were spending time with Zachariah, who she did start to call Zachy Poo when Elias wasn't around. He was able to walk a few steps before falling, but crawling was easy for him. They would play with his toys, and she would watch the joy in his eyes as he would fit the shapes into the right place. Felicity was worried that the bond she had with her son would take longer to come, but her heart was quick to receive her child.

Although sad she missed so many months with her son Felicity wanted to make the best of it now. Abandoning her son would never happen again. Even when she wasn't able to share the room with Elias yet, Felicity was quick to go to her son the moment he would make a noise, spending hours on the rocking chair humming to him.

When her Zachy Poo took his naps, she wandered around the upper floor of the house. What she needed now was more clues to indicate what was behind the facade. Felicity had to admit Elisa did a great job in making everything impersonal, only showing off an image of what people would expect. She wasn't surprised, though, remembering how many nurses would fawn over him in his hospital and her parents only giving him praise. He was a man of appearances. Even his parents had their parties, interactions, and household top-notch, Elias was seeking approval from those around him.

Fortunately for her, Felicity never had to live to meet the approval of others. Everything she did was because she wanted to. That was no way to live, making choices for your life purely to receive accolades from others.

Walking into the master bedroom, she looked around the minimalist themed decor to give away anything about her life before. She only saw the same picture from Zachy's room and a book on the nightstand to the right side of the bed. Figuring it was Elias' side, she walked up and opened the small drawer.

There was nothing other than some sleeping pills and a camera. On the stand, Felicity read the title of the book, Don Quixote. Of course, she should've expected a classic. She remembered reading it in high school, coming to terms with the dangers Don Quixote's fragile mind endured. She picked it up, flipping through the pages absentmindedly. Remembering the ending, Felicity thought of how bleak it was in showing how fickle the human mind is wrapped up in a fantasy, wanting to be the fantastical hero but is merely a dreamer who achieves nothing of great sorts. 

  
She wondered what Elias would think of it. His bookmark was only in the third chapter, so he had a long way to go before realizing the essence of the story. Maybe in some ways, he was similar to the titular character, wanting something that is not part of reality, to be the hero of their own stories, but the opposite happens. A grim feeling passes through her at that thought, feeling sympathy for her husband if that was the truth.

She set the book back down before going to the other side of the bed, a nightstand with a picture of her son. Opening the drawer, she found nothing. Either she had nothing from before, or Elias removed her belongings.

Walking out the room confused, she turned left, realizing there was a west wing to the house. Felicity has no reason to look there before, confining herself to the guest room she stayed in the past five nights. Having the time now, she walked forward with the sound of her short heels tapping on the floor.

The first door to the left was slightly open. Pushing it, a slim finger flicked on the light to see a room encased with polished wood. The bookcases were filled with trinkets of all sorts that Felicity recognized as her own. She passed the elevated desk with blueprints on it to move further back where there was another desk full of neatly stacked papers.

There were many contracts and a daily planner that wasn't as neat as whatever Elias had on the fridge. She smiled, looking at the different pastel color inks that dried on the pages. Flipping it to the front, curious eyes drifted to the schedule. Every event was timed to the 't'. She would have breakfast with Elias, take Zachariah to Mrs. Montgomery before heading off to work, at 1:30 have lunch, and after work, she would spend time with her son again to have dinner with Elias around 6 in the evening. 

  
Everything revolved around Elias, and this schedule was only a reminder of how suffocating her life was. There would have to be changes made starting from today. That was what she kept reminding herself. But as she thought that, there was a dreaded feeling inside, thinking these changes may never happen.

There was nothing to be found in her office other than things for work. Felicity decided to call it a day and stop searching for now. Taking a couple of blueprints, she closed the door behind her. Ready to take a stride back downstairs, the flickering of light came into her vision. Turning, she saw sheer curtains blowing in the light breeze, narrowing her attention to a closed-door further down the west wing. 

  
Knowing what it would be, she went straight down. Her hand reached the knob, twisting it, but no traction was given. Pushing the door didn't help much, either. What could Elias be hiding in there for it to be locked when he wasn't around? 

  
Many ideas came to mind, but Felicity told herself not to make too many conclusions before she ends up in folly. The only thing she was doing from the beginning was to make assumptions about her life for the past four years. It was because she knew so little her mind was quick to blame Elias for everything, and that wasn't fair to him. Other than that first day, he didn't do anything towards her. There was nothing but kindness from his actions, and it was cruel of her to be suspicious.

Guilt seeped in, leaving her defeated as she walked out to her son's room.

Maybe this was the right time to start dinner. 

  
~~~

  
As her journal said, Elias was home for dinner at six o'clock. His attire was impeccable as per usual, but there was a tiredness in his eyes that showed his stress. He gave off a weary smile seeing Felicity work in the kitchen. The aroma of hot food invaded his system. Washing his hands, he leaned over to see what was on the stove.

Glancing at him, she gave a wide smile, "It's pot roast."

"MMhm, my favorite. How'd you know?" He went towards the high chair that Zachariah sat on, kissing him on his soft cheek.

"I read the schedule you had earlier and saw it was the last meal on the list, so I decided to make it." Nodding, he walked to said list, only to find it gone. Her eyes were weary, not sure of how his reaction would be, "I erased it. The last date was from months ago. Besides, I've been thinking, with all the new changes maybe we should start too. Instead of putting everything into an itinerary, we could, you know, go with the flow."

  
The frown on his face only spoke bad news, "I understand that you can't remember how things were once before, but you can't just change our entire routine just because you can't remember. I'm trying my best to keep everything under control. It would all be in vain if you try to change it." Elias took a step towards her. Without thinking Felicity took a step back, seeing his hand raised to her face. There was no rational thought towards the action, but she swallowed air as his eyes became kind, like a light switch changing his demeanor. His fingers touched her cheek lightly, no malice behind his action.

"I know it all looks to be a new world for you, but you have to trust me. Everything will be fine if you do as I say." He was a broken record now, only telling her to trust him. 

  
Her eyes widened, her body was expecting something worse, and she had no clue as to why. Thick fingers moved slowly from her cheek down the length of her jaw, resting on the nape of her neck. 

  
Instantaneously, a headache overcame her, causing nothing but a throbbing on her temple. Felicity fell to the floor groaning in pain, not sure of what was going on. Flashes of light were behind her closed eyes, blurry images of hands around her neck, and pain enraptured her mind. Covering her face, she cowered away from her husband, who too was alarmed by her reaction.

Putting their son down, he crouched down by his wife, but as his hand went to touch her, she cornered herself even more. 

"Please, just leave me alone for now." Her voice was small, trembling from the looming shadow of her tall husband. 

Elias didn't want to, not knowing what warranted this behavior, but respected her request regardless. 

  
Tears did not fall from her eyes, but immense pain caused her lips to quiver. There was a dark voice echoing in her mind, vaguely familiar bus distorted, "Do as I say, why can't you ever just be grateful to me?"

Elias watched his wife on the floor in pain, wondering what was going on in her mind. He knew it was a memory, no doubt he caused, but which memory? In the pit of his stomach, he hoped it wasn't anything that would scare her away from him. 

  
For ten minutes, Felicity was on the floor, holding her hands to her face. Finally feeling strength, she stood up with shaky feet, holding onto the counter. "I think I need to rest. Help yourself to dinner. I won't be eating tonight."

Even if he did say anything, she would've ignored him. 

  
Up in the abyss of the guest room, she had finished taking a shower. Her gaze rested on her body, tentative in touching her skin. Months ago, when she saw the various bruises from her shoulders and chest down to her upper thighs, she thought it was all from the car accident. 

  
What she had experienced downstairs, though, made her question the nature of these bruises. Her once broken leg still had a scar, but it was faded, just enough to show that the accident was months ago. The bruises on her upper body were faded a bit lighter, indicating that the injuries were made before. Eyeing her battered leg again, her eyes furrowed as she moved closer to a scar on her calf, a small circular scar on uneven skin. With all the bandages and prominent scarring on her leg, she barely noticed this little faded wound. It looked like a bullet wound. The hairs in her neck stood straight, wondering what could've caused that mark, what did she undergo in the last four years?

Did she think Elias had hit her during their marriage? Not necessarily. The memory she had did not take place in the kitchen but in the master bedroom. Her husband's voice was distorted, but the colors she saw reflected him being shirtless. The only time she saw him in that manner was when he would go to sleep.

  
So while she didn't think he hit her out of anger in the day. It made her wonder about his taste beyond his physical nature. 

  
Not wanting to ponder on it any longer, she donned on some silk pajamas and went straight to sleep, not bothered by any more memories. All she wanted was answers, but now Felicity wasn't so sure if she was ready to handle them.


	10. X

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity has the courage to sleep in the same room with Elias.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a short update before shit hits the fan lol

The days for Felicity became a bit faster. Since that night of her episode, her focus went straight to preparing for work.

Elias was kind not to mention it but still had everything done in his routine. The schedule was back up on the board, little aspects changing every day. She bonded with Zachariah, now taking him to her office as she would watch him play on the floor while catching up on her projects.

She was diligent enough to email her boss for a quick update before heading back into the world of business. Having all the notes and potential projects at hand, she began to retrace her steps to see her past projects. Maybe it was tooting her own horn, but she was impressed by the layouts created with her own hands. 

When it was time to leave her work alone, Elias would call her to ask about dinner.

Oh yes, call her on the cell phone he had gotten her. On her fifth day back home, he gave her the slim smartphone. Felicity had one already, but Elias claimed it was her old one from high school, the original one she had got destroyed in the accident. The one he gave her had all her clients and past messages and plans. "It's all in your cloud."

Taking it, she saw it was password protected. "The password is our anniversary." Typing the date she saw on the marriage license, she saw the image of her, Elias, and a smaller Zachariah in the photo.

"We both have the same password on our devices." She didn't question how he knew her password, so hearing his explanation without warrant, an eyebrow rose. He had access to all of her things, yet there was no way for Felicity to know him beyond his words. Either he hid everything in his locked office or on his person.

It was hard to learn about him when he was purposefully keeping himself at bay. 

Elias reached his hand open, "I'll put your old phone somewhere safe."

Oh no, she was not going to let him control that too, "It's alright, I'll just hold onto it for now." The twitch in his eye did not go unnoticed, but she feigned ignorance while walking away. 

Now, she changed the password to something only she knew from childhood. Not even her parents would be capable of knowing what she referred to through the numbers she entered. Felicity also changed the background photos to her son alone. She didn't want the constant reminder of Elias always invading her thoughts. This act of rebellion would upset him, but Felicity needed to show that she wanted her own space from him, to have a sense of independence again; to have some privacy in her marriage. 

On the sixth night back, she intended on keeping the track record of sleeping in the guest room where she felt safe. That all changed when she exited her closet in the master bedroom. Elias was standing in the doorway, not giving her space to escape. 

His eyes were light. A mild smile was on his face before asking his wife, "Do you want to try sleeping here tonight?" Wanting to give a quick refusal, she stopped thinking back to what he told her before. 

He was right if Felicity was ever going to find out how life was before she needed to start participating in the old lifestyle.

Despite her instincts, Felicity nodded. "Sure, let me just shower." His smile widened, combing a hand through his hair before moving away from the door.

"Just shower here. All your stuff is still in place."

Not wanting to give away her hesitance, she just gave another nod before walking in, this time locking the bathroom and putting a chair to block the door. Elias wouldn't know unless he was trying to enter in.

Her mind was running a mile a minute as she allowed the hot water to run down her skin. What would transpire now? Did he expect everything to go back to normal?

Since the first day, he eased on the touches, but she did become comfortable in a matter of days. Even though her mind couldn't conjure up the memories, her body knew better, just going with the motions. She was thankful he didn't attempt to kiss her. There was only so much she could handle.

Taking her time in changing, Felicity looked at her attire. Finding some oversized knitted sweaters, she decided to wear a forest green one that reached her mid-thigh along with some shorts she found.

She needed to buy a new wardrobe when she was able to drive again. Being her doctor, Elias found it best if she didn't drive for a couple more months. He insisted that he would take her everywhere she wanted to go.

Combing out the knots in her thick hair, she fingered the strands reaching down her back. There was a big chop in her near future, that with lightening her hair. If she was to go forward with becoming this new person it needed to start with her appearance.

Removing the chair holding the door closed, she was thankful not to have heard any jangling from the other side. 

Treading slowly towards the king-sized bed, she watched as her husband was reading Don Quixote. If he heard her moving, there was no indication he was distracted by it.

Sitting down on the bed, she pulled the covers over her legs, watching him through her hair blocking him. That went on for a few minutes, her silently watching him read then flip the page again and again.

"You should take a picture. It'll last longer." Blinking, she watches his face turn to her with a playful look on his face. Clearing her throat, she returned his smile. "Is this what you usually do at night?"

He placed the bookmark, patterned with strawberries (odd for a man who kept things plain), on the page he last read and gave a thoughtful look.

"Usually, on a Thursday night, I would still be in my office doing paperwork. When I would come to bed, you would already be asleep, usually with a book in your hand."

It did sound plausible to Felicity, "Oh, so I guess my next question would be, what was the last book I was reading?"

He held up the book in his hand, "This one. I would usually stick to Greek classics, but since you weren't around, I thought I would give something different a try."

Maybe he wasn't the stickler she thought him to be, "How are you enjoying it so far?"

"It's alright. It's easy to feel for Don Quixote. All he seems to want is a perfect world where he's the hero."

A rueful smile emerged from her lips, "Unfortunately, there's nothing perfect in this world. Even if Don wanted to be the hero, he did nothing in his life to become one."

"While that is true, you can't blame him for trying. Every guy wants to be the hero of his own story, even villains. They all want to have the epic ending with a girl on their side. It doesn't seem too much to ask for." 

Though Elias didn't realize it, he did give away too much of himself with that statement. Felicity saw that in his mind, whatever it is that he did, actions were done with good intentions for himself. Her role was to be his damsel in distress. 

His eyes raked over her body, "Are you sure you want to wear that? You might get a bit warm in the night." 

"I'll be fine. I was wondering, is there a chance to stop by a clothing store tomorrow? I only have sheer things to wear at night. My style is usually a bit more modest."

"Sure." Elias struggled to agree. It was evident in his throat bobbing harshly. 

_ Compromise, I need to compromise.  _ That was the mantra Elias kept playing in his mind whenever Felicity did or requested something out of the ordinary for him. All the time and energy he crafted into the last four years went away in waste. He wasn't used to having Felicity so defiant, at least not since the beginning of their marriage.

He played with her hair for a few moments. The even breathing of her body next to him made him smile in triumph. Soon, everything would be just as before. There were some kinks he needed to smooth out in Felicity. But, like once before, he would fix it.

Giving a kiss into her fragrant hair, Elias took one last look at the book in his hand. Felicity may be right. There is nothing perfect in this world, and all done to achieve it would be in vain. The difference was Elias was used to having the world as he wanted it to appear. 

He was the hero of his story, and Felicity was the girl in need of saving. 

Saving from herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We have about 3 chapters left of this story, I can't believe it! Everything will be happening FAST, be warned. 
> 
> All I'll say about the next chapter is...Felicity goes back to work. We'll see how Elias reacts.


	11. XI

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity's first day at work doesn't go as planned, thanks to a certain brooding force. 
> 
> Elias starts to crack under pressure

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two chapters left guys!!

Like the first day of school for a child, Felicity felt nervous on the drive to work. She obsessively studied the plans from her home office, hoping all the skills she relearned wouldn't pass her mind when confronted with her boss.

Being mid-April, the sun was playing hide and seek with the rain, so the air was damp with a light mist. At eight on the dot, all three members of the Montgomery household were on the move to go about their day. Elias was in a blue dress shirt under a gray cashmere pullover sweater, doctor's gown in hand. Felicity wore a black polka dot blouse and a tan midi skirt. Both were modest in attire. After locking Zachariah in his seat, they set to first head to Elias' parent's house.

Felicity kept kissing her child before giving him to his grandmother, sad to leave her son for even a moment. Entering back the car, she gave out a sigh, elbow on the hand rest looking out the window. The soft sound of Bach surrounded the car as Elias drove out of the town into the city.

"Don't worry. Everybody loves you there." She watched Elias concentrating on the road before glancing at her.

"I'm sure you are right, but it can't be helped. The worry, I mean." She looked at her painted nails, seeing the glimmer of the wedding ring on her left ring finger. Elias did not force her to wear it until the night before, insisting that her co-workers would question why her ring was not on. Despite thinking that no one took notice of that, she complied with his demand. 

"Just give it time. You'll get back to things." His right hand moved from the steering wheel to her left hand, squeezing it. It didn't take long to reach the firm. Before getting out of the car, Elias stopped her.

"I love you" He kissed the top of her forehead, giving her an encouraging smile before letting her go. Felicity felt her cheeks turn a shade darker at his words. It was the first time he said it out loud.

Regaining her composure a pleasant smile was on her face before entering the tall building.

The architecture inside the firm was beautiful, a homage to ancient Greece on the walls. Walking to the receptionist, she watched all the people moving about fast in all directions. 

"Felicity?" Her attention turned to an older male in a gray suit, hair salt, and pepper with hands in his pocket. Curious eyes watched his smile, no ill intent behind them. She knew who it was, the founder of this firm, Phillip Beckford. Taking confident strides to her boss, she gave out her hand for him to shake, "Mr.Beckford, so glad to see you."

"It's good to see you too. I hope you had a full recovery. We missed you here these past months."

"Thank you. I'm happy to be back." Putting his hand back to his side, Mr.Beckford lead her up two floors to an office, her office.

Elias did tell her several times that she was an important member of the firm but the reality wasn't registering until she saw the sign on the door: Felicity Montgomery, Project Manager.

It would usually take almost a decade after joining an architect firm to even be considered for the role of a project manager. Her boss gave a hearty laugh seeing the confused joy on her face, "I know what you're thinking, but since you were interning at this firm years ago, you rose through the ranks with your work ethic and, quite frankly, skills. You deserve it, Mrs.Montgomery, don't let me down."

Smiling earnestly, Felicity nodded. "Of course! I promise not to disappoint." Mr.Beckford left her moments later, allowing Felicity to take a better look into her office. Plaques of her degree and architect license hung on the wall, her desk clear of any work other than one paper. Not wanting to waste any more time, she obtained the files for her new project, happy to get back to work. 

The first hours flew by fast. Felicity didn't realize what time it was until a knock was on her door. "Come in." 

She put her pencil down, looking over the plan she made so far. The project given to her was for an art gallery down on Fulton Street.

Looking up, she saw an unfamiliar man standing before her, "Hello?"

He was of average height. Light blonde hair combed neatly with bright blue eyes looking at her with glee. He wore a casual striped dress shirt with the first button undone, khaki pants ironed with a brown belt holding it to his slim waist.

"Felicity, it's been a while. How are you?" 

"I'm fine? I'm sorry I don't remember who you are..." His eyes flashed confusion before a lightbulb sparked, "Oh, my bad. I'm Niall, the other project manager for the firm. My office is right across from yours."

She moved her chair to look straight outside. Her co-worker was right. "I forgot about your memory loss. Who would think that?" His melodious laugh carried around the room, contagious enough for her to follow suit. "It's no problem. I guess it's right to say it's good to see you. How were things at the firm while I was gone?"

He took a seat on a chair in front of her desk, "Busy as usual, your clients were sympathetic towards your ordeal and refused to work with anyone here until you were back, so that was great for the firm." A grim look passed over his face, but it went as quick as it came with his face upturned, "I'm kidding, of course! While your favored clients did choose to wait until you returned, everything at the firm was fine. If you want, we can catch up on our lunch break. Sounds good?"

She glanced at the watch on her wrist, half-past twelve, "That sounds fine to me, Let me just put everything away, and I'll meet you downstairs?" He agreed before leaving her office. Felicity was glad to have a friend in the firm. At least she thought he was a friend over a foe.

After setting her plans away safely, she took her purse before walking down to the front of the building.

Niall waved at her when she reached, suggesting to eat around the new Thai restaurant a couple of blocks down. They had a good time together. Felicity was thankful to catch up quickly towards the way the firm ran.

It was refreshing to spend time with someone outside of Elias, who surrounded her every moment he was physically capable of doing so. From nightfall until the break of dawn, Felicity would find herself encircled by massive arms, her back to a solid chest. Many conversations she would have with him were awkward, revolving around how their relationship was in the past, according to Elias.

To sit around, speaking about something different, was priceless to her.

But like all good things, it came to an end. After paying her part of the bill, Felicity felt the vibration of her phone. She answered it, seeing her husband's name flashing on the screen.

"Hello?"

"Hey, are you ready to head for lunch? I was thinking we could head to the Greek restaurant near the hospital." Did they usually eat lunch together? Excusing herself for a moment, she went outside to get some privacy.

"I already ate."

"You didn't have to eat alone. You could've waited till 1. That's when your break usually is." 

"I didn't eat alone. I'm with a co-worker..." The phone went silent for a few moments, "Hello?"

"Who is this co-worker?"

"Niall, he's the other project manager at the firm. He was bringing me up to date about affairs at the firm." There was still silence coming through his line, "Elias, is everything alright?"

"Yea, I mean yes, of course. I'll see you tonight then." The line went dead as he hung up the phone. She looked at her phone in disbelief. Felicity scoffed at his childish behavior.

"You trying to steal my clients already?" Startled, she looked back to see Niall smile at her as he walked out of the restaurant. Cracking a small smile, she nodded, "Of course, gotta work twice as hard now that I'm back."

"Ready to go?" She looked at her co-worker, who was oblivious to her ordeal, "Sure, I plan on finishing at last half of the plan tonight."

He smiled at her, "Ahh, Felicity. Still the go-getter."

~~~

Later that evening, when Elias picked her up, Felicity felt the iciness in his attitude. For the first time since being with him, he was quiet, out of anger. Not sure of what she walked into, she tried to break said ice. "So work was pretty good today. Two clients called asking for help in future projects, and I'm the head of one currently."

"That's nice." Despite his words that carelessly came off his tongue, not caring to even glance in her way. Felicity knew she was complaining about it before, but now under these circumstances, all she wanted was to communicate with him to know everything was alright.

"How was your day at work?" Her eyes held interest, hoping he would engage in speaking about himself. He parked the car in front of his parent's house before picking up his phone to text someone, not glancing at his wife once.

"Work was fine, as it would usually be." Knowing she was not going to win this argument, Felicity decided to open the car door and walk to the front door of the house, wanting to meet her mother in law for a proper greeting. Ringing the doorbell, a muffled "just a moment" was heard through the door.

A small smile was etched on Felicity's face as the door opened, hands open to hold Zachariah. "Hi, baby! How did my little Zachy treat grandma?" The small child leaned towards his mother's embrace, a toothy smile showing as a giggle erupted from the small child.

"Well, he wasn't too tough this time around. He made granny here work out a bit with his fast legs!" Laughter ensued. between the two women, "Thanks so much again, Mrs.Montgomery."

"Please call me mom. You used to always call me that." The joy in Felicity's eyes dimmed a bit, "I'll try my best. I should get going now, Elias is a bit more quiet than usual, and I'm not quite sure what to do."

Knowing what her daughter-in-law meant, Lynda Montgomery waved a dismissive hand, "Oh, don't worried about him. Since he was a child, he would always behave like that when he wanted attention. He'll come around eventually."

Bidding her goodbye, Felicity contemplated how immature Elias was behaving, all because she didn't have lunch with him. 

That was how most of the evening went. Every time Felicity would try to interact with Elias, he would ignore her or head in a different direction. The only statement she said that he made any action towards was, "Dinner's ready."

For the first time, they ate in silence, save for when Zachariah made sounds as she fed him.

She tried her best to not allow it to get to her, knowing that she did the same thing to him for a long time. The difference back then was she had no clue who he was to her. After putting Zachy to bed and taking a long shower, she decided to try once more to get Elias to speak to her. The last thing she wanted was a falling out for something so stupid. 

Walking down in her long pajamas (which she bought days before), her eyes went towards the small light ignited in the living room. 

It was a fire. Felicity had to stop herself from rolling her eyes. Elias was full of dramatics. It was mid-April. There was no reason to add any extra warmth to the house. Tentatively, she walked towards his broad figure sitting straight across the fire. Awkwardly, she stood by the couch, her eyes following his line of sight to see him staring at the painting above the fireplace. If anything, that painting only brought on more sadness over anything else.

Not wanting to delay any longer, she cleared her throat for him to not even turn to her. Lips a straight line, she sat at the furthest end of the couch. "Elias? Elias! You need to stop this. Both of us know that this is extremely immature."

The only way she knew he registered her words was the deepened frown on his face. Taking a different approach, she got up and stood in front of him. Though she had little doubt she was tall enough to block even an inch of the painting, Felicity's shadow cast over him with the light behind her.

"Look, I didn't know you wanted to have lunch with me. There was no plan for us to meet. My coworker offered to tell me about what has gone on in the firm for the past couple of months, so I agreed. I'm sorry if that hurt your feelings, but I won't apologize for making plans without you. I need my space just as much as you, even if it is just during work."

It wasn't that she stood there proud of herself for speaking up, but there was a sense of defiance in her knowing this was the first time since being back with Elias that she voiced her thoughts truthfully without worrying about how he would feel. It became clear that he didn't care about how she felt. 

But like all things, this feeling did not last. When he did look at her, somber eyes flashed anger for a moment, but was quick to conceal it again. It was his turn to stand up, hovering over her by over a foot, his shadow engulfing the room, giving off a sinister vibe. Felicity was nervous to know what was on his mind now, taking a step back, but his hand shot out to stop her. Vice grip on her upper arm, she felt her body tremble. Maybe this confrontation was a bad idea.

"Felicity, you could have notified me at least that you wanted to spend your lunch with another man. If I spent time with another woman, I would think that you too would want to know."

"Well, that's the difference between the both of us then. I wouldn't mind, as long as you told me after. I trust that nothing's going to happen just because you spend your break with a co-worker. It's not as if I will ever have a chance to find out. You only worry about me and every second of my day. I know better than to believe it's because you care, it is an obvious sign of control on your end, and it needs to stop. Now." She didn't want to put up with the excuse falling back on her.

Experiences from previous relationships showed that you needed trust, not suffocate your partner, and for some reason, Elias did not trust her a bit, as if she was set on running away without him near. 

"You always tell me to trust you, but yet you have no trust in me. How does that work out?" His grip tightened on her, moving her arm does nothing as he was much stronger than her. It was evident that he was edging anger, and it would be the first time she would remember seeing him this way.

"It's not that I don't trust you,  _ dear _ , but I don't trust others around you."

"That's bull, and you know it. You don't have to trust those men. It's me, and what's the use of marriage if you can't trust your partner?" She was not going to fall for this. Felicity had a friend in high school who would always crawl back to her on and off boyfriend because of this issue, him not trusting her. He would give the same excuses of not trusting the guys around her, that he would protect her, but the truth was he wanted to control her.

Felicity refused to be controlled. In any manner. 

Not giving any reply, Elias turned his wife's body over, forcing her to look at the horrid painting above the fireplace. It was beautiful, but terrifying. His arms encircled her, not giving her any chance of escaping.

"Do you know why we have this painting here?"

She shook her head, "I bought it. For you." Tilting her head up at a painful angle, she looked at his gaze towards the painting.

"You don't remember, but you told me one day that this was beautiful. It was the first time I saw you fascinated, lost in something so alluring. Do you know who it is?"

"I can't recall. Who?"

"Persephone, or as she was named by Rossetti, Proserpine. You couldn't take your eyes off of it, so I thought I would buy it."

"To impress me?" Though she didn't see it, he has that bittersweet smile on his face, recalling this conversation years before, "I suppose to an extent, yes. I wanted to show you I would buy anything you desired." 

"It doesn't sound like I desired this. It is beautiful, no question, but because something is beautiful does not give us any right to possess it. Ownership over anything does not equal power." His head found its way to rest on her's, it seemed to be a loving embrace, but it was only a way to keep her close to him.

"Doesn't it?" Shaking her head, Felicity attempted to move from him, but he held on tighter, as if he were to let go, she would disappear forever.

"Once anything turns into a commodity through the means of economic exchange, it can be owned, therefore giving the power to said owner. Dare I say even over people, even if it does sound deplorable, there is truth in that sentiment. There is nothing greater than having your person."

She was scared now. This conversation took a sharp left, and she was not here for it. Elias made it sound okay for people to have slaves of sorts, that with money, he could own a person. 

He could own _her._

"Well, it's a good thing you didn't buy me then." The hearty laugh that escaped him befuddled her, wondering what about that statement sounded funny. Turning her around to him, he kissed the top of her forehead, "Of course, dear, you're right."

His grip on her loosened, "Look, I am sorry for any jealously I had today. I just don't want to lose you again. We just got back to a degree of normalcy. That said, there is no proper excuse for my childish behavior. How about we forget this and call it a night ma pêche, hmm?"

Though she knew he was probably saying this to change the topic or to appease her, there was nothing for Felicity to do other than to accept it. She did not want this vibe to stay any longer, so as long as he was willing to apologize, all she could do was agree.

Pulling her chin up towards him, Elias captured her lips with his. The kiss was strong, holding the same passion she remembered months before. Her mind lost the fear towards him returning the kiss. He moved back onto the couch. Her body fell onto him before pulling back.

Now wasn't the right time.

"It's been a long day. How about we head to bed?" The fire in his eyes dimmed at her halt but nodded, none the less. 

She wasn't going to allow his physicality to take charge of her rationale. Felicity trusted her instincts, and it was screaming a warning at her. Even if she couldn't fully understand it, his behavior was significant today. An old dog can't learn new tricks. The familiarity and fear she felt were not to be tossed away in the sand. 

She was determined to find who Elias was once and for all.


	12. XII

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity finally gets a clue to understanding her past, but will she ever get the chance to unveil it?

The next couple of weeks passed by quickly, life taking its course of going with the flow and losing oneself to the busy workload. Felicity was happy that she was able to progress in work. Her projects were successful, and she won back the top spot at the firm in no time. She spent time with her family, watching their bonds grow stronger with time.

Since that incident on her first day of work, Elias made amends to giving her the desired space she needed. Though he still drove her to and from work, lunches they once had was not mandatory. Elias did become a bit more open in talking about his work and any interactions he had with his colleagues, and Felicity did the same. Soon they were confidants in one another. Did Felicity trust him fully? Not entirely. He still had erratic behaviors once every few weeks when Felicity decided to do things differently. It could be something as small as a change in her style of clothing to putting work overtime with him on certain nights. At times she couldn't gauge what to do about him, but overnight he would go right back to the Elias she knew, the facade he crafted.

This entire time of getting her life back, Felicity barely had a chance to glance in the direction of her parents. She felt guilty, not wanting to abandon her own. She decided one day to change plans on Elias.

~~~

"I think today we should take Zachariah to my parent's house." 

Elias stopped shaving halfway, turning to his wife, who was putting a product on her face. "I don't know...we can't just spring this on them. Besides, you know my mom loves spending time with him."

"I already spoke with them yesterday. My parents are more than happy to see their grandchild. As for your mother, I think she would enjoy a rest from running behind Zachy for a day." He gave out a sigh, "You should've spoken to me about this first."

"There's no harm in our son seeing my parents. I don't see the problem here." Felicity knew she was actin g hardheaded. There was no reason to hide the want to see her family again.

Walking out of the master bathroom, she got dressed for the day after notifying her mother-in-law about the change of plans.

Dropping their son off at Felicity's parents, Rohan and Sonya seemed ecstatic in seeing their daughter once again after months apart. Hugging her in loving embraces, they both became misty-eyed seeing her go back into the car.

Though it had been a while, Felicity was surprised to see such a reaction from her parents. They would always dote on her and were hyper-aware of her safety, but even then, they never cried at her return from long semesters at college.

Like the other times she would do something to displease him, Elias was quiet. This time, though, he did kiss her goodbye before she headed off to work. Maybe he was starting to come around to Felicity making her own decisions in their marriage.

Her day at the firm was busy, planning out blueprints and working with clients to making sure their needs were met. Adding in the cost of budget and contracting workers for the job, her mind did become swamped at times, often forgetting what time of day it would be until her stomach cried in hunger.

Felicity took it as the time to eat. Getting her papers together, she was pondering where she would head to eat. Unlike the idea she knew her husband was thinking, most days, Felicity would take her lunch break alone. Having that hour to herself was priceless, free to think and do as she pleased without having anyone over her shoulder. It was at most once a week she would eat with Niall to discuss the business of the firm.

Closing up, she was startled, feeling a presence near her.

"Sorry about that, didn't mean to frighten you."

"Niall! It's fine. I wasn't expecting to see you today. Don't you have a meeting coming up?"

"I'll take it as you wishing me luck and not trying to get rid of me, but yes, I do. That's not why I was coming to bother you today, though. Here." She looked down and saw an envelope in his hand. Taking it, she read her name written in her handwriting.

"What's this?" He shrugged his shoulders, "I'm not sure. I remember back a few weeks before your accident, you asked me to hold this for you. I forgot about it until this morning, looking for an old document. I thought it best to give it to you now so you can see it on your break."

"Thanks." Smiling, she left to get some air. After walking for a few minutes, she found herself at a nearby park, her muscle memory remembering the direction. Sitting down on a bench across from a fountain, she crossed her legs before opening the envelope. 

It read:

**_ Don't believe the false hope. Draw yourself back home. _ **

**_ It isn't all as it seams, but take the gamble. When one door closes, a window opens. _ **

**_ The wolf lies in wait, howling through the moonlight. _ **

**_ Well in time, the story will unfold. The closer you get, the more mysterious he will get. _ **

Felicity turned the paper over. Seeing nothing, she wondered what made her write such an odd riddle. Thinking over the words, she was stumped as to what the riddle could ever mean. Frustrated, she went on to grab lunch down the street.

Her day continued at a slower pace, confusion consuming her thoughts. She was trying to figure out all the parts together, but it was utter nonsense. Picking up the note from her bag, she looked at the spacing of the sentences. It was step by step almost, each line a direction for her to take. Thinking in a new light, she read over the first line. Maybe how calm things were now was not meant to show a new beginning? And to draw herself back home?

The only home she knew was her parents. It felt safe to be there compared to living with Elias. Probably her parents had some answers. They must know something she doesn't.

Looking at the clock ahead, it was quarter to three. By chance, she saw two men along with Niall walk out of his office. Rushing to him, she called out his name, hoping he would turn back.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Are you leaving now?" He nods, hands in his pockets.

"Could you do me a favor and drop me off somewhere? I need to leave a bit early and get my son." Concern shone in his eyes, "Of course. Let me finish up with my clients, and I'll meet you in the front lobby." Grateful, Felicity went back to her office to gather her things.

After giving Niall her parent's address, it barely took fifteen minutes to reach. Thanking her friend, she walked up to the red door with a floral wreath in the middle. Ringing the doorbell, she waited a moment, hearing footsteps coming to the door.

"Hel- Felicity! We weren't expecting you so early. Is Elias here with you?" It was her father holding Zachy in one arm. Shaking her head, she gave a big smile, "No, I decided to come a bit early to, you know, catch up a bit."

Her father looked surprised at her statement but opened the door a bit wider so she could enter.

Walking to the kitchen, Felicity saw her mother moving about with pots on the stove, the aroma of masala engulfing the room. "Hey mom, you making come chicken masala again?" The older woman took a moment to look at her daughter before processing a response, "Of course, it's never too young to start this cutie with Indian cuisine." She pinched the cheeks of her grandson lightly, laughter erupting from the young child.

The homely feel with her parents brought longing to Felicity's heart, missing the bonds she shared with her loved ones. "I'm sorry for not being able to talk to you all for the longest. With work, now everything's gotten so busy, and trying to adapt with everything takes a toll." Both her mother and father smiled at her, "Oh dear, it's quite fine. Your father and I completely understand. We're just glad that you came to speak with us on your own."

A laugh of disbelief came out of her red-tinted lips, "On my own? Do I usually come here with Elias all the time too?" A somber look passed between her parents. 

Uncertainty filled the air.

"Felicity, before the accident, we didn't speak to you for years." She didn't know her eyes could widen so much until that moment, "You guys are kidding. Right? Why would I stop speaking to you?"

Passing his grandson to his wife, Rohan stood up and walked to his daughter, separated by the kitchen island. "Dear, we tried to call you all hours of the day, even at work, you would never answer. Whenever we were at the country club, you weren't there, not even at the parties. Elias would tell us how you were doing, bless his soul. If it wasn't for him, we would never know you were safe."

None of it made sense to Felicity. What would make her so upset to stop speaking to her own family? Furthermore, why would her husband be the messenger? "So, you would only make contact with Elias?"

"Yes, whenever we would ask about you joining events and festivities, he would always say you weren't ready. That  _ you _ said you couldn't bear to be in the same room as us."

Leaning on the counter, she tried to catch the breath she hadn't realize was quickening from the revelation. "Why was I....what was it that caused me to stop speaking to you?" Her father breathed out a long sigh, his own hands beginning to tremble. In all her years alive, Felicity never saw her father give any signs of nervousness or weariness about anything. He looked towards her mother, who gave a firm nod.

Walking around the island, he put an arm around his daughter's shoulders, "Felicity, we need to talk." Her heartbeat rang in her ears, mindlessly following her father to the living room. Sitting her down, her father crouched in front of her while brushing a hand through his curly hair.

"Filly, you know, over the years, we, well I, had a hard time building up my business. Despite issues we all had to overcome as a family, we made it out alright. From that dingy apartment in Queens to living in this affluent town, I hoped through my mistakes and hard work, you and your brother would learn to do better than I did. My little girl now a woman of her own, an up and coming architect building and planning concepts for big-name corporate companies..." He raised his hand to touch his daughter's soft face, eyes filling with water, remembering her earnest face as a child.

"You were always a tough cookie. Nothing could knock you down. I'm sure that's from your mother, not me. Whenever trouble comes to me, I break down. Not a trait you see in a lot of men, but I'm one of them." Tears slowly rolled down each cheek. Sobs began to choke her father. She stretched her hands to rub her father's shoulder in comfort.

Catching himself, he forced himself to regain composure for a short while. "I'm just saying all of this because of how much I miss you, dear. I've done something so terrible against you!" Sobbing ensued once again, her father hugging her tightly, not wanting to let go. Though she did not understand what was happening, she returned the hug, "Daddy, don't worry. There's nothing you can do that would ever make me stop loving you."

"No, that isn't true, Felicity. There is something grave that I did, and if I don't tell you, now my conscience would never have peace." This news had to be big. Her father never acted out in this way before.

Holding her father in an embrace, she was lost in thought before the ringing of the doorbell brought her back. Who would be here so early?

Brown eyes watched her mother opening the door. The elder's eyes widened a fraction before donning a smile, "Elias, I wasn't expecting you so early!"

"Is Felicity here?" Giving a curt nod, Sonya opened the door for her son in law. Long strides were taken to the living room. Amber eyes watched the scene before him with questioning eyes looking back to his mother-in-law. "Is everything alright?"

"Y-yes, you know how emotional Rohan can get. He's just missed Felicity, that's all." Rohan took the hint and wiped his tears away before turning to the taller man, "Elias, it's good to see you. Why don't you guys stay for dinner?"

Giving a salesman smile, Elias declined. "No, thank you. I just came to get Felicity and Zachariah so we could have our small family dinner. With how busy our work schedules are, it's hard to have a moment to spend together."

That was a bald-faced lie. Felicity watched her husband take their son from her mother, "Come, Felicity, let's get going now."

Even if she wanted to know more about her father's well-guarded secret, having Elias here meant it wasn't the right time. How did he even know she was here, and how fast did he leave the hospital to reach here twenty minutes after she did?

Hugging her parents, Felicity bid her goodbyes, walking out of the comfort of their home into the chill of the evening air.

Halfway through the drive home, Felicity thought it would be best to start asking questions, "How did you know where I was?"

"Hmm? Oh, well, since a surgery got canceled, I wanted to surprise you at the firm. I'm sorry for my terrible attitude this morning. When I heard you left your co-worker, what's his name? Neil? Anyhow, he said you went to your parents, so I thought I would get you from there."

Why did he always have a convenient answer for everything? While plausible, Felicity tapped her fingers on the edge of her seat, wondering why he wouldn't just call her ahead of time.

"Niall, his name is Niall. You could've just called me ahead of time if anything."

"And you could have called me to let me know you went to your parents' house early."

Grumbling, she looked outside the window at the clouds moving. "I just wanted to catch up with them. Other than work and home, I haven't seen my parents in months. They live closer to us than your own family, yet I never even invited them over to our house to have a meal."

Instead of a rebuttal she expected from her husband, Felicity was surprised by the silence.

"Why was I so upset with my parents? My father told me when we first got married, I stopped speaking to him and my mother. Did any particular situation happen that I should know about?"

Shaking his head, Elias watched both sides of the road before making the left turn onto the highway leading to their home. "I honestly don't know why you stopped speaking to your parents. One day you just told me you were angry with them and refused to speak to them. I did try to give you space about it, and when I did decide to ask about it, you kept silent. They would always ask me how you were doing, so I would occasionally give them pictures of you to show things were alright."

Wasn't that great? Her father was going to tell her the whole reason why and Elias ruined it. Now she may never have the opportunity again to find out more about the falling out.

"Alright, well, that's all part of the past. I think it would be best to forget that and move forward with them, right?" Her husband gave a nod, parking up the car.

"Yes, we should all move forward." Elias picked up her hand, giving it a chaste kiss, "To new beginnings." Giving a weary smile, she repeated his statement, "To new beginnings, may we work hard to change for the better."

The tick in his jaw became visible, hearing the last few words. Maintaining his smile, he got out of the car and picked up his sleeping son from the back.

Watching her husband walk towards the house, Felicity glanced down to the envelope, inching its way out of her purse. Wanting to keep it hidden, she decided to take the not out of it and hide it in a smaller compartment of her makeup bag she carried with her. It could be considered pitiful that she thought so low of her husband that he would snoop, but now there weren't any more chances to be taken.

Slamming the car door shut, she walked up the stairs as her husband watched her with hawk eyes. He was watching her move. One mistake, and he would ravish her. She just knew it.

Time; that was all she could barely afford. The clock in her mind was ticking loudly, warning her there wasn't much time left. For what?

She hadn't the slightest clue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Only one chapter till all is revealed!!! I will probably update later this weekend or next week but I can't believe we're here guys. I kinda want to cry. 
> 
> Hope you all enjoyed this chapter <3


	13. XIII

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alas, all is revealed

Three weeks pass by since Felicity last saw her parents, and despite always agreeing with her to invite her parents over, Elias always found an excuse to stop it from happening. Either he was working late at work, or he wanted to be alone with Felicity, but there was no problem to see his parents on request. Though she did adore spending time with her in-laws, Felicity wanted to see her family a bit more. The last she heard, her brother Nigel finally passed his BAR exam. A celebration was in effect for his achievement.

In the last few weeks, all the small freedoms she had from her husband were diminishing bit by bit. Elias started to come to her firm during her break so they would eat together, and if they went to see friends (which were barely any) or head to the country club, he stuck to her like superglue. Felicity wanted to interact with others, speak about different topics, and catch up, but it was awkward to do so with someone who didn't share the same social graces she grew into naturally.

Like clockwork, their schedules at home were nearly identical. The only time she had to herself was when he had a late surgery, which was seldom. Felicity's main focus outside of work was to make Elias happy so she would have the burden of his constant shroud lifted from her shoulders. She was thankful that he at least didn't snoop in her belongings, not even trying to go through her phone to supervise any activities she did. 

Though it was a thin veil of peace, she was more than happy to accept it. That all changed one Thursday in June.

It wasn't known to rain terribly during this time of year, yet there was a thunderstorm overflowing the streets with water. It was eight in the evening, dinner was finished, and both Felicity and Elias were getting ready for bed.

Finishing her shower, Felicity exited the bathroom with a towel around her head, drying her hair as she smoothed out the silk dress she wore to bed. She sat on her side of the bed, picking up the copy of Clarissa by Samuel Richardson, a book Elias recommended and bought for her. Having read the first hundred pages, Felicity was thwarted by the cruel nature the girl's family regarded her in. Clarissa was intended to be used for social gain, but the poor girl was so confused with the cunning Lovelace at her every corner. It seemed that Clarissa had no breaks.

On Elias' empty side of the bed, his book rested on his pillow. He was still reading Don Quixote, nearing the end after having it for months on end. It wasn't that he found the book boring, quite the opposite. Oftentimes more than not, he found himself fantasizing like the titular character, lost in the pages only to read it once more.

Unfortunately, he wasn't going to finish it tonight. Walking into the bedroom, he went straight to his closet to grab a dress shirt and some trousers. Seeing his rushed actions, Felicity stopped reading for a moment, "Is everything alright?"

Without pausing his answer, "Yes, there's been an accident down on Fulton, and one of the passengers got a glass through his leg. I need to head there now to do emergency surgery." Quick movements had Elias dressed before finishing his statement, "Don't wait up" he kissed her on the lips once before going downstairs. 

"Be careful!" If he had a chance to respond, she knew he would say some sardonic comment. She waited a few moments. Hearing the front door close, Felicity went to the bedroom window and watched his car drive off into the highway leading to town.

Seeing how rushed he was, she decided to take a gamble and go into the west wing. Her door was always open for use. Felicity had nothing to hide. Hearing the thunder, she made sure her son was sound asleep before walking back.

Jackpot! He left his door open.

Walking in light steps, she glanced around the mahogany room. Not a paper out of place, books were organized by color and size. On Elias' desk, there were pictures of her and Zachariah. The photo of her was from years before. She could tell by her style of clothes and the painting she was staring into, Proserpine.

Wanting to seize the moment, she gingerly opened his drawers. One was full of writing utensils, and another a journal with his schedule. Going into the lower drawers, she found a camera, the same one from his nightstand. Turning it on, she decided to check the memory for any pictures before her accident. 

What she found was not for the public eye. Horror ran down her learning what he held dear to him, images of herself in ways she never thought imaginable. Blood and handprints were in some, bruises and nakedness in others. The device fell out of her grasp, smashing onto the floor.Trembling hands were quick to move further into the desk, a second journal was found. This one was thicker, and the pages seem worn. Opening it, Felicity read the words of her husband, finding his true self written on the pages. He was a different person behind the facade he worked so hard to maintain. There were vivid fantasies, and things about her said that she never wanted to know.

Putting it back along with the broken camera, she thought it best to leave before finding out any more hard truths about Elias. Felicity went off to her own office, frantic to find anything hidden for her own sake.

She searched all her bookshelves, inside her drawers, even through her blueprints for clues. Felicity knew her past self left something for her present self to find. Defeated after searching for an hour, she fell into her chair exhausted.

Wanting to clean up a bit after her frenzy, she started to gather her pens and pencils together to pack away. Shuffling in her uppermost desk, she moved her hand to the back of the compartment. There was an unfamiliar feeling of a knob in there, so she pulled to see what was inside. 

A false drawer. 

Jumping to her feet, she went towards her purse and searched for the note from weeks ago. A laugh escaped her, realizing what the note was trying to tell her. There was a false drawer at home. Her happiness was fleeting, now being overtaken by nerves.

Going back to the compartment, she pulled it open to see a brown leather book. Opening it, she sat down on her chair was looked at the first page. It was dated two years ago, almost to the date. It was her old journal. A spark lit in her knowing what this meant. 

Curious to see what her past, she sat back, allowing the flickering light on her desk to give her the means of reading. 

An hour passed, then two. Engrossed in each page, Felicity read about all she went through being married to Elias. The horrors and triumphs that were written on the pages made her heart feel in real-time.

Her horror turned to sadness, and that sadness turned into anger. 

She realized who Elias was to her, nothing but an enemy.

When she finally read off the last words of warning, she turned to the clock in front of her. It was half-past two in the morning. Eyes were red from anger, not sure if she could contain it for much longer. 

Felicity went downstairs, knowing that her husband had yet to reach home. She sat in the living room, eyes bored into the painting before her. She finally captured the essence of the woman portrayed, the betrayal and sadness she endured. Resentment was quick to spread through her bloodstream, wanting nothing more than to smash his head in for all the wrong he did to her. Anger emitted from her skin, not only at Elias but herself. How was it she willingly stepped back into this glass prison? Albeit she wasn't aware, but her body must've known. Her mind was screaming it from its disdain towards him since the beginning. 

Another hour passed before the front door opened, the rain pelting harshly against the front door. Squeaking shoes padded for a few moments, "Felicity? What are you doing up so late, missed me?" 

Rolling her jaw, she breathed out her nose, hoping that she would maintain her cool for just a few moments, just to see if he was willing, to be honest with her once and for all. She knew he liked it when she spoke softly, so she tried her best speaking that way, "No, I've just been up and thinking...Elias, do you love me?" 

Felicity's body went to his, her book held behind her. His hair matted with water, and he still had on his wet clothes, water dripping onto the tile floor.

Keeping up with his polished image, he gave her a rueful smile, "Of course ma pêche, what type of question is that?" 

It was hard to hold back tears, but she did her best to stay strong. "You say that, yet your actions don't hold up. I'm begging you. Please be honest if you really love me." She walked a few steps closer to him, but they were worlds apart, "Elias, how did I get into the car accident?" 

Without missing a heartbeat, he responded, "I'm not sure, as far as what was reported to me, your breaks stopped working, and a car hit you on the four-way. What is this all about?" His eyes were tired, his tone became weary. 

Whatever moments of trust she held for him before were all gone, her eyes showing anger towards his unsuspecting mind. 

"I know you ripped the breaks. I know that you got me into the accident on purpose." His eyes flashed fear for a moment.

"Don't be ridiculous. Look, it's late, and we're both tired. We will talk about this in the morning." His hand moved to pull her, but she took a step back. "No, this isn't going under the rug. I know what you did to me!"

She held up her journal, "Everything is in here, from the accident to all the acts you put me through, physical and psychological. From the burns and conditioning to the choking and threats you sent my way. Why? Why did you want to hurt me so badly?"

Tears flowed like hot streams down her face. Her nose sniffled, imagining all he did towards her. That was when it clicked. The mask that Elias worked years to hold together shattered in seconds. His eyes had amusement, walking closer to her, roughly taking hold of her arms to his wet body, "Why I did it? WHY I DID IT?!" A sinister laugh escaped him. With the lack of lights and thunder rolling, there was a shadow of a devil showing when lighting crashed. 

"All I wanted from the beginning was for you to love me, to like me for who I was. I did everything for you. From buying your grandeur possessions to moving into another state, just so you can have the freedom you craved so badly. I did whatever I could to please you, but you wanted out so badly, you could never appreciate me or the wants I had."

"I never wanted anything you had to offer, and as for love, if you even knew what it was, these bruises would never be on my body!" She stuck out her chest to show the faded burn marks on them, the slashes carved into small initials of his name.

"You're mine Felicity, whether you like it or not. You belong to me by contract and law. Whatever I see fit to do towards you is covered by our signatures." All his eyes emitted were evil, wild, and animalistic.

"You were planning to leave me, and I couldn't have that. I refuse to be the man with a wife that left him. What does that say about me? That I can't hold my own? I had to do it, anything to keep you near me. Al-All I wanted was to ruin your legs. To stop you from running. The memory loss was a gift given to me somehow, and I tried to make it work. I told myself I would take things slow, and we would rebuild our lives together." Wild changed to desperate in his amber eyes, "It was all working out so well, but you just had to ask questions. If you had only trusted me, then we could've abandoned the past."

Without a second thought, he pulled her towards the stairs, ready to do as he pleased. Fight renewed in her, she fought back with what little strength she had. "Let me go!" She kicked and pulled away, biting into one arm before a slap stopped her. "Stop acting like a damn animal. If you want to be treated like one, then that's fine."

Tears welled once more, but her fight didn't stop. Throwing down her book, she fought with both hands, scratching his face with sharp nails. Screaming, he loosened his grip on her for a moment, long enough for her to run out the door. 

The rain made the ground slippery, her bare feet gliding on the stairs as she willed not to fall.

"Felicity, get back here!"

Adrenaline surged in her as she ran off into the trees surrounding the grand home. That was all she afforded herself to do, push her feet beyond the rocks and twigs, the sharp pieces of wood cutting her feet.

She heard the breaking of twigs under his boots, looking for any direction to hide away from him.

"Look, Felicity, it's dangerous out here. Just come back. I promise we can work everything out. You'll still go to work, and you can even spend time with your family all by yourself. I-I won't do anything you would've wanted me to do, I promise!" His booming voice held false promises, wanting her to be lured into his trap like a deer to a hunter.

Finding an obscure tree, she hid, shivering from the cold water piling onto her. Holding a hand to her mouth, she willed herself to keep quiet, at least until she knew Elias was gone. 

Hours pass, the twilight of the night changed into a cloudy sunrise. Not hearing his voice or footsteps for some time, Felicity willed it safe to find another way out of this place. Away from his prison for her. Shivering, she feared hypothermia would overtake her body if she didn't find help soon. There had to be somewhere she could go, someone, she could trust for help. 

In her lost thoughts and delirious state, she jumped, hearing a gun cock behind her. 

"Stop! Keep your hands where I can see them."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The epilogue will be posted in a few days.


	14. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fin

**In the distant future**

Snow fell onto the crystallized window on a cold day. A blizzard was in effect. According to the weatherman, no one should be outside due to the state emergency enforced by the governor. It was warm and crispy indoors, a safe harbor to the harsh reality outside. 

Sitting at her desk, Felicity worked on a new blueprint for a recurring client. This was for the new library wing at the nursing home for all the elites. Her project distracted her from the weather, mind thinking towards the future. 

_Knock_

"Hey, how are you holding up?" She looked towards the large figure and smiled, "I'm fine, just a bit busy."

A steaming cup of hot cocoa rested from his hand, "Of course, just wanted to check up on the both of you. What movie do you want to watch tonight?"

She took a moment to ponder on it, "Whichever one you want to watch."

A triumphant grin emerged on his face. Bending over, he kissed his wife's cheek, "That's my girl." Staring at his wife for a moment longer, Elias smiled seeing how well everything worked out at the end.

After that night in June, the authorities were able to find her, cold and delirious from the rain. She was taken to the hospital, cuffed to the bed in a private room. After getting better, she had a warning put in her record. He burned her journal in front of her when she was released back home, telling her in not so sweet words what would happen to her if she does it again.

Now, there was no sign of resistance from her. 

As he closed the door, Felicity's eyes lost all spark. Her hand rested on the growing bump on her belly. She knew better than to make an outburst against him. 

Her chair swiveled to the large window behind her, watching the world beyond the acres of land covered in snow. 

One day, she promised herself, I will be free again.

Opening her trusty draw, she fingered her book. A small hope washed over her. 

Yes, one day. 

Fin


End file.
